European fish processor Findus Group has indicated that it will increase its commitment to sourcing sustainable fish supplies, sharpening its focus on farmed fish.

The company announced today that it aims to buy all the wild-caught fish for its Young’s and Findus brands from Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified suppliers by 2012.

The move would mean that an estimated 50 million retail packs will carry the MSC logo each year.

A spokesperson for the group revealed that, while there will be an increase in costs as a result of the move, Findus does not anticipate passing this expense along to consumers.

“There will be an investment required to achieve this goal. However the group has undertaken a full assessment of the cost implications of the decision and is fully prepared to make the investment necessary. It is not expected that these costs will be passed on to consumers,” the spokesperson said.

Findus Group CEO Chris Britton said that company hopes the move will “provide added stimulus for those fisheries not yet pursuing independent sustainability certification to go down this route”.

However, in the longer-term, Findus said that it anticipates farmed fish will become an “increasingly important part of its portfolio”.

“In the field of aquaculture the group is already working with those developing new international certification standards such as the ASC but this is not as well developed yet as the MSC. The intention is to make a further announcement on this as soon as feasibly possible,” the spokesperson revealed.

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