ASC-certified entities shall only use the ASC label, claim, and trademarks if authorised through a signed ASC Licensing Agreement.

Unauthorised label display or use of trademarks is prohibited and will be treated as a trademark infringement. For more information see ASC’s Label User Guide or contact licensing@asc-aqua.org.

Once ASC-certified seafood is produced by a certified UoC, every company that owns or handles the ASC-certified products must be covered by valid ASC Chain of Custody (CoC) certification. This includes any processing or packing conducted while the product is owned by the UoC. This assures consumers and seafood buyers that ASC-labelled products come from certified farms. ASC uses the Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard, plus the ASC-owned CoC Module, to verify the origin of seafood sold as ASC-certified. This process benefits companies that handle both ASC and MSC certified seafood by allowing them to do a combined audit. CoC certification covers activities beyond farm production, such as processing and packing. For more information see Chain of Custody Standard – ASC International or contact info@asc-aqua.org.

All ASC certificates are available on the ASC website for verification. Issued certificates are the property of the CAB.

Each certificate specifies the scope (i.e. ASC Farm Standard) and the sub-scope of the certified UoC (i.e. animal group and species name). Examples are listed below:

An ASC audit follows strict process requirements. These requirements are detailed in the CAR. Only ASC accredited CABs are allowed to audit and certify a UoC against ASC standards.

As scheme owner, ASC is not involved in the audit or certification decision of a UoC.

As part of the ASC commitment to transparency, all audit reports, findings and certificates are publicly available on the ASC website. These include audit findings that result in a negative certification decision.

The ASC Certification Programme is a voluntary third-party certification programme consisting of the following independent actors:

Scheme Owner: Aquaculture Stewardship Council

As scheme owner, ASC sets and maintains standards and associated assurance documents and their underpinning procedures, as well documents and resources that support the implementation of the Certification Programme.

An overview of all documents and the latest version can be found on the ASC Controlled Document Master List.

Conformity Assessment Body: Provide certification services in accordance with the requirements of this scheme.

The legal entity responsible for the Unit of Certification (UoC), contracts a Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) which employs auditor(s) that conduct an independent conformity assessment (hereafter ‘audit’) of the UoC against the relevant ASC standard.

The management requirements for CABs as well as auditor competency requirements are described in the CAR and are assured through accreditation.

Integrity Services Provider and Accreditation Body:

The Integrity Services Provider is appointed by ASC to oversee the integrity of the programme.

Integrity services and accreditation are currently provided by Assurance Services International (ASI). Findings of ASI assessments and an overview of currently accredited CABs are available on the ASI website.33http://www.asi-assurance.org/s/

The documents and tools listed below support the implementation of the ASC Certification Programme:

The documents and tools listed below are a normative part of the ASC Certification Programme:

Additional documents are referred to in Indicators and Appendices of this standard in such a way that some or all of their content constitutes requirements of this document.

For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.

ISEAL is a global membership organisation for ambitious, collaborative and transparent sustainability systems, that drives collective efforts to tackle the most pressing sustainability issues and create a world where markets are a force for good.

The ASC Certification Programme is ISEAL Code Compliant. The ISEAL Code is a globally recognised framework that defines best practices for effective and credible sustainability systems.

The Power of Seafood

A nutritious protein source and a key component of global food security, 3.3 billion people rely on seafood for at least 20% of their animal protein consumption, and between 400 – 600 million people are directly and indirectly involved with the industry11UN Fisheries Panel (COFI36): Aquaculture as a solution to food insecurity, malnutrition and poverty.

With population estimates of 10 billion by 2050, and with wild caught fisheries at capacity, farmed seafood comprises almost 60% of seafood consumed as its numbers and importance continues to grow11UN Fisheries Panel (COFI36): Aquaculture as a solution to food insecurity, malnutrition and poverty. Care must be taken immediately to limit the industry’s negative impacts.

Responsible seafood farming eases pressure on natural resources, protects precious ecosystems, promotes economic opportunities and addresses food security challenges, caring for seafood, people and the planet. A crucial link in the circular economy, it upcycles multiple by-product streams into much needed high-quality protein. 

Our Vision

A world where seafood farming plays a major role in supplying food and social benefits for humanity whilst minimising negative impacts on the environment

Our Mission

To transform seafood farming towards environmental sustainability and social responsibility, creating value across the chain using market mechanisms, improvement incentives and delivering value-added services from farm to fork

Transforming Seafood Farming

ASC is accelerating the transformation of the farmed seafood industry by:

Our supply chain partners choose ASC certification for the most robust standards and the highest assurance ensuring traceability and transparency throughout the supply chain. By choosing ASC-labelled seafood, consumers in over 100 countries are contributing to a sustainable future.

Making an Impact

The impact of the ASC programmes in the seafood farming industry is substantiated across multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)22For more information on ASC’s SDG work, see https://www.asc-aqua.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/ASC-SDG-Report-2022-1.pdf.

Simplifying this target framework, ASC contributes specifically to the following areas: 

In addition to the focus of ASC programmes on these key SDGs, the ASC standards contribute to a broader range of SDGs at different levels to address the impacts of seafood farming on fish health and welfare, people and planet.

Throughout the ASC Farm Standard, there are SDG icons showing which are contributed to at both Principle and Criterion levels. Note that the extent to which any  ASC-certified farm contributes to these SDGs will depend on its specific circumstances, including its scope, the species farmed, the nature of its operations, workforce, geography and neighbouring stakeholders.

ASC Certification Programmes

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