We define sustain-able seafood as coming from sources that can maintain or increase production without jeopardizing ecosystems, while maintaining healthy marine life popula-tions, and respecting seafood workers and communities throughout the supply chain.
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AT ARAMARK, OUR MISSION TO ENRICH AND NOURISH LIVES MEANS PROVIDING SAFE, NUTRITIOUS, QUALITY FOOD IS CORE TO WHO WE ARE.
Sourcing food responsibly impacts not only our local and global economies and the environment, but also people’s health and wellbeing. We think about these impacts with every purchase and we work with many partners to source local, seasonal, responsibly raised and grown products whenever we can.
SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD PROGRESS AGAINST OUR COMMITMENTS
MAKING AN IMPACTOur Sustainable Seafood Principles and Policy guide our global position on
responsible sourcing for wild-caught and farm-raised seafood products, and
details our purchasing practices, commitment to reporting, and approach to
stakeholder engagement.
We’re proud of the significant progress we’ve made across the industry:
• Since 2008, we’ve been working toward purchasing 100% of our contracted
seafood in the U.S. from sources that meet Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood
Watch® Best Choice and Good Alternative recommendations by 2018.
• Of our contracted purchases, more than 90% of our frozen finfish
and 100% of our canned tuna meet Seafood Watch recommendations.
This includes products like cod, catfish, tilapia, pollock, and skipjack
and albacore tuna.
• We are transitioning all contracted salmon and shrimp products to
Seafood Watch Best Choice and Good Alternative, including wild-caught
salmon from Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified fisheries and
shrimp from eco-certified sources.
• We’re on track to meet our 2018 seafood commitment, and continue
to raise the bar by expanding our seafood contracts to ensure additional
species we purchase meet Seafood Watch recommendations.
SINCE 2008, WE’VE BEEN FOCUSED ON
RESPONSIBLE SOURCING PRACTICES
FOR WILD-CAUGHT AND FARM-RAISED
SEAFOOD PRODUCTS.
DRIVING CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT In the seafood industry, transparency and traceability are industry-wide challenges. It’s often
difficult to access key pieces of information, like the method or region where seafood is caught,
or insights into labor practices to avoid human rights abuses. We are working with our partners
to access and verify source data, driving our purchasing goals and supporting sustainable
livelihoods for seafood workers.
We’re focusing where we can make the greatest impact:
• Working with suppliers, distributors and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), we’re
addressing the challenges of tracking of key data elements to verify the species, and where
and how it was caught.
• We require our suppliers to provide annual progress reports and third-party supporting
documentation that demonstrates they meet or exceed our expectations.
• We focus on avoiding seafood that was transshipped* at sea or is from illegal, undocumented
and unregulated (IUU) fisheries by requiring our suppliers and distributors to incorporate
protocols that ensure compliance with our standards.
• We remain committed to making continuous progress to address social and economic issues
impacting the lives of workers, local communities and cultures.
Since April 2016, we’ve been sourcing 100% contracted canned skipjack tuna from fisheries certified by the Marine Stewardship Council and albacore from pole and line caught sources.
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TRANSSHIPMENT AT SEA*When seafood products from one boat are transferred to another boat at sea, before arriving in port, these products are transshipped. This is cause for concern. By avoiding ports and moving products around at sea, boat operators are more easily able to engage in illegal and unethical practices, such as:
• Harvesting illegally caught fish
• Mixing products from different sources or catch methods
• Engaging in the practice of slave labor
Transshipment is more common in the tuna fishing industry, so we pay special attention to this issue when sourcing tuna. In fact, our canned tuna supplier has confirmed that all tuna is off-loaded from the catch vessel in port, ensuring no transshipment is occurring.
INDUSTRY WIDE CHANGE Driving responsible seafood practices goes beyond what we purchase. In partnership with our
suppliers and advocacy organizations, we’re helping to drive industry wide change:
• Our commitment is built upon the Conservation Alliance for Sustainable Seafood Common Vision, a six-step road map developed by a coalition of conservation groups that work with businesses
representing over 80% of the North American grocery and food-service markets.
• Our Sustainable Seafood Principles & Policy brings the Common Vision to life through our
public commitment and priorities, approach to data collection and commitment transparency,
education and awareness, and our focus on continuous improvement in fisheries and aquaculture.
• As a founding member in Seafood Watch’s Foodservice Roundtable, a group of the world’s
leading foodservice companies, we:
• Advocate for policy reform in the U.S. government and domestic and international
fisheries management bodies to address illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU)
fishing, plus harvest control.
• Support the development of the Human Rights Risk Tool for Seafood that indicates the
likelihood human rights abuses taking place on fishing boats in a specific fishery. Using this
tool, we are able to identify potential risks and hotspots to focus enforcement of our policy.
Seafood Watch applauds Aramark’s business leadership - from their responsible canned
tuna policy, to calling for stronger tuna fisheries management with international govern-
ments, to working with the supply chain to improve transparency, Aramark continues
to demonstrate the important role businesses can play in driving sustainability.
- Jennifer Dianto-Kemmerly,
Director of Global Fisheries and Aquaculture, Monterey Bay Aquarium
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About AramarkAramark (NYSE: ARMK) proudly serves Fortune 500 companies, world champion sports teams, state-of-the-art healthcare providers, the world’s leading educational institutions, iconic destinations and cultural attractions, and numerous municipalities in 19 countries around the world. Our 270,000 team members deliver experiences that enrich and nourish millions of lives every day through innovative services in food, facilities management and uniforms. Learn more at www.aramark.com or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.
October 2017
CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT • We use our Green ThreadTM marketing materials to help consumers connect the dots between
our actions and our words. When consumers see Green Thread™, they know sustainable seafood
practices and programs are in place.
• We’re helping to reduce plastic waste that contributes to ocean pollution by offering solutions to minimize single-use plastic disposables like reusable to-go food and beverage containers,
compostable disposables, water bottle refilling stations, and increased availability of reusable
water bottles.
GLOBAL LEADERSHIPAramark supports United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (UN SDG #14) which recognizes
that the wellbeing of people and the health of oceans are connected. This goal addresses: protecting
human rights, dignity, and access to resources; ensuring equality and equitable opportunities to
benefit; and improving food and livelihood security.
In June 2017, we signed on to United Nations Voluntary Commitment 15142, entitled “Committing to
Social Responsibility in Global Fisheries and Aquaculture”, submitted by Conservation International,
with the support of many non-governmental organizations, private sector companies, intergovern-
mental agencies, academic institutions, philanthropic organizations, and seafood certification
programs. This commitment is consistent with Aramark’s Sustainable Seafood Principles and Policy,
including our emphasis on human rights, labor abuses, and transshipment at sea.
ABOUT GREEN THREAD Green Thread™, the company’s environmental sustainability platform, brings to life Aramark’s
commitments and programs focused on sourcing responsibly, minimizing waste, running buildings
and fleet efficiently. Learn more at: www.aramark.com/responsible-sourcing
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