The ASC have developed an Improver Programme (IP) comprised of a set of procedures and tools to ensure that ASC standards or best practice improvements are consistently and effectively implemented by the producers. The IP model encourages uptake by groups of farmers and provides processes for group engagement in the improvement project. This document summarises joint efforts from ASC and SFP to develop a joint monitoring and evaluation framework for this new IP model. 

This report summarizes the key lessons learnt by each of the key stakeholder groups from participation in the ASC Improver Programme pilot. The ASC standards set principles, criteria, indicators, and measurable performance levels for environmentally and socially responsible aquaculture. However, producers carry the responsibility to implement these standards at their farms, where smaller operations may have financial or technical constraints.

This assessment has been undertaken as part of the ISEAL Innovations Fund project: Streamlining the path towards sustainability in the aquaculture industry, Integration of seafood certification and jurisdictional assurance models. The collaborators in this case are the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP), and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch® program (SFW). This report presents an analysis of the data alignment and complimentary data aspects of the three schemes.  

This document summarises the approach ASC, SFP and SFW took to data sharing throughout the Integration of seafood certification and jurisdictional assurance models project in March 2022. It explores data collected at different scales, and how this data can be created, shared and used by the project partners. 

Aquaculture improvement projects (AIPs) have recently emerged as a new form of market-based and non-state governance in the aquaculture sector (Bottema, 2019). They embody multi-stakeholder efforts that leverage the influence of the private sector to drive improvements in aquaculture production and ensure that these changes endure through improved policy and management strategies (Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP), 2019).

This infographic illustrates the research report authored by AidEnvironment and commissioned by ISEAL. The report is a refresher of the 2016 review and synthesis of literature and evidence of the business benefits of adopting sustainability standards. In total 40 credible source research documents, covering seven sectors were reviewed.

The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), together with Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) and Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program (SFW), are piloting an improver programme to implement best management practices with the aim of improving farm and zonal management to mitigate critical production risks. This document identifies key lessons from this project.

This document summarises the findings from ASC's pilot project exploring remote monitoring within aquaculture certification programmes, over in-person monitoring.  Most aquaculture certification programs are reliant on in-person audits Audits occur just once a year due to cost and have been difficult to conduct because of COVID-19. Tracking improvements is time-consuming and costly with only in-person methods. Emerging technologies can address data gaps in smallholder shrimp farms and help grow farmer participation in ASC.

This webinar presents the paper ‘Conservation Impacts of Voluntary Sustainability standards: How Has our Understanding of conservation impacts changed since the 2012 Publication of “Toward Sustainability: The Roles and Limitations of Certification”?’.

This document identifies the Traceability and Chain of Custody options available for improvers' products, as identified through the ASC Improver Programme pilot. 

What is the role that standards systems play in changing the practices of certified entities? How effective are standards systems in driving change in practices over time? This webinar explores these questions and delves into the findings of a new research review conducted by the University of Oxford and 3Keel consultants.