School Food Standards prompt 18% increase in UK schools serving sustainable fish
One in six UK primary schools are now serving MSC certified sustainable fish to students according to figures published today by the Marine Stewardship Council.
Over 500 schools have become MSC certified in the past year, an 18% increase, taking the total to one in six schools offering their pupils demonstrably sustainable fish. The MSC attributes the change to the new School Food Standards which came into force in January this year.
Henry Dimbleby, one of the authors of the School Food Standards said: “This report highlights the impact of the School Food Plan on the sourcing of fish in schools. It shows a strong start, though there is still a long way to go. Thousands more school pupils eating sustainable fish, supporting sustainable fishing and learning how to protect the marine environment: that’s a fantastic legacy to leave our children.“
“The evidence is clear: eating fish, and particularly oily fish, is good for developing brains and bodies. But while feeding children well today, we also need to protect their future. That’s why we recommended sustainably-sourced, MSC certified fish...”
Fish and Kids is a project to get MSC certified fish into schools, both onto menus and through a range of educational resources.
Sustain are now calling on government to continue the good work of the School Food Plan by extending the standards to all schools. Currently 3,844 academies and free schools are exempt.
Sustain runs the Sustainable Fish Cities campaign.
Published Thursday 30 July 2015
Sustainable Fish: A campaign to protect precious marine environments and fishing livelihoods, and call for fish to be bought from sustainable sources. We want to show what can be done if people and organisations make a concerted effort to change their buying habits.
