What is Aquaculture?

Aquaculture is the practice of farming seafood. It’s like agriculture, but done with fish, crustaceans and shellfish. Aquaculture businesses breed and harvest plants and animals in water – fresh water or sea water – and prepare them for human consumption.  Aquaculture already provides over half of all the fish product that we eat in the world and half of the fish that is sold by Sainsbury’s.  It’s the world’s fastest-growing food-producing sector, and it’s going to play a crucial role in helping to feed a planet with an ever-growing population.  

We need aquaculture for many reasons including producing food for humans to eat, helping to rebuild populations of threatened and endangered species, restoring habitats, boosting wild stocks of freshwater and seawater species, breeding fish for zoos and aquariums.

What is ASC?

We need to ensure that fish are farmed in a responsible way so we are working with our suppliers to certify all the farms which supply Sainsbury’s to the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) standard. 

 What does the ASC ecolabel mean?

You can be certain of traceability throughout the supply chain, from farm to fork. ASC farmers minimise their impacts on the environment and care about their employees and local communities.

When you purchase a product with the ASC ecolabel on it, you: 

1. Can be certain of traceability throughout the supply chain, from farm to fork
2. Can be certain the ASC farmers adhere to strict environmental and social standards
3. Are helping to preserve fish for the future

This year, Sainsbury’s became the first UK supermarket to have 100 per cent of its fresh Scottish salmon range independently certified by ASC and RSPCA assured. This is on top of all Sainsbury’s Sea Bass, Sea Bream, Tilapia, Basa and chilled and frozen King Prawns products being ASC certified. 100% of Sainsbury’s farmed seafood is sourced from farms which have been certified to at least one of our recognised standards (or is certified organic)  

Supporting the highest standards in aquaculture

To help combat overfishing whilst providing our customers with the best quality, responsibly sourced fish, Sainsbury’s is committed to increasingly sourcing farmed seafood certified to the world’s leading certification standard, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC).

Seafood in store that carries the ASC logo has been sourced from farms that have been independently certified as both environmentally and socially responsible. To meet the ASC standard, farms must undertake an independent audit in which their practice and performance is assessed against a host of strict, science-based requirements including the quality of the water, impact on the seabed, antibiotic use, fish health and welfare, through to the fair treatment and pay of workers on the farm.

Sainsbury's responsibly sourced farmed Scottish salmon

All of Sainsbury’s Responsibly Sourced farmed Atlantic Salmon is sourced from selected RSPCA Assured farms on the West Coast and Islands of Scotland. Our farming partner has supplied us with salmon grown to our specific requirements since 2008 and is in the process of certifying all farms to the internationally recognised ASC farming standard which addresses both social and environmental best practice. Our salmon are fed a diet made from ingredients which originate from well managed sources and which contains no artificial colourants. The feed is formulated in order to ensure that one portion (120g) of Sainsbury’s fresh salmon typically provides an individuals recommended weekly intake of healthy long chain omega 3 fatty acids – specifically 1.75g EPA +DHA per portion thus ensuring a healthy and sustainable outcome for our customers.  

More on sustainable fish