What is the Supermarket Survey?
In 2009, MCS conducted a survey of the UK’s supermarkets to find out the sustainability of the seafood on sale in their stores and the policies they have for sustainable seafood.
What questions did we ask?
To assess the sustainability of seafood sourcing by the UK’s major supermarkets the MCS assessed the following areas:
- Does the supermarket have an environmental policy?
- Does the policy address the issues associated with wild capture fisheries?
- Does the policy address the issues associated with farmed fisheries?
- What species do they sell? Are these on the MCS Fish to Eat or Fish to Avoid lists?
- Does the supermarket label seafood in a way that enables consumers to make a sustainable choice?
- Are staff trained in sustainability issues?
- Is the supermarket investing in fisheries or aquaculture improvement projects?
To see a copy of the questionnaire click here (pdf)
How did MCS come up with the final results?
Each supermarket was scored out of a maximum 5 stars for each of the issues.
An overall score was then awarded as a final percentage, as seen in the bar chart.
From this, MCS was able to make informed recommendations about each of the supermarkets, which are summarised in a handy Sustainable Seafood Shopper Guide.
Our Supermarket Survey table shows how they fared in each of the sections.
Why is my supermarket not listed?
Some UK supermarkets did not reply to our questionnaire. A list of those supermarkets we contacted but which did not respond includes Aldi, Booths, Budgens, Farmfoods, Lidl, Netto and Spar.
What can I do?
- Use this information to make informed choices about where you shop and what seafood you choose to buy.
- Use the FREE MCS Pocket Good Fish Guide and Fishonline to help you choose sustainable seafood.
- Help MCS's work by joining or making a small donation.
