Shoprite Checkers (Pty) Ltd. ("Shoprite"), as a responsible retailer, is committed to engage in sustainable business practices in the fish and seafood sector. As a member of WWF-SASSI Retailer / Supplier Participation Scheme, we commit to goals in accordance to our strategic focus areas and activities, in partnership with World Wide Fund for Nature's Southern African Sustainable Seafood Initiative ("WWF-SASSI").

As South Africa's largest retailer, Shoprite is a significant role player in the seafood industry. We are aware of the global urgency to preserve marine resources and alleviate environmental impact of over-exploitation on marine and freshwater systems.

Sustainable seafood is acknowledged as:

  • Categorised as Green on WWF-SASSI list; and/or
  • Certified by credible standards that measure environmental sustainability, such as Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) for wild-caught fish and/or Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) for farmed fish or benchmarked standards

As such, Shoprite South Africa commits to source products from only sustainable seafood sources or from fisheries and aquaculture operations that are undergoing credible* and time-bound improvement in the environmental performance of these operations for:

  • Our Private and Exclusive branded seafood products by end December 2020
  • All our Retail Business Operations by end December 2025.

We commit to environmental and socially responsible sourcing practices which:

  • Will ensure all seafood products are lawful and traceable back to source
  • Communicate and consider existing/new fish products against our sourcing criteria, with our fish and seafood suppliers
  • Engage small, medium and micro-enterprises (SMME) and suppliers to positively change the fishing sector by supporting, training and promoting environmentally and socially sustainable seafood practices

We accept that by supporting and promoting sustainable seafood/fish choices originating from fisheries or aquaculture farms - which can continue to operate indefinitely without reducing the target species or adversely affect other species in the marine and freshwater ecosystems - we can create a sustainable seafood market.

As a responsible retailer, Shoprite wishes to equip customers to make environmentally responsible choices. Consumers should have the right to transparent labelling and accurate product information pertaining to:

  • Common name of species
  • Scientific name of species
  • Country of origin
  • Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) catchment area
  • Production/harvest methods to obtain the respective species
  • Any credible official eco-label symbol (where applicable)

Shoprite, in conjunction with our seafood and fish product suppliers, aims to create consumer awareness by communicating our sustainability commitments to the public through:

  • Promotion of eco-labels
  • Marketing and branding of sustainable seafood options
  • Adequately train all personnel employed in the chain of custody of fish and fishery products to engage with suppliers and consumers
  • Provide seafood and fish product ranges that are subject to continuous improvement

These commitments and goals shall be a measure of our reputation, integrity and accountability towards the transformation of our seafood and fish products business and industry relationships.

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* Shoprite, with the assistance of WWF-SASSI, will determine the credibility of these improvement projects on a case-by-case basis and will provide guidance to fisheries/ aquaculture facilities as to what constitutes a credible, time-bound improvement project.