Making marine science matter to seafood consumers

For many of the world’s citizens, the closest they come to marine conservation, or even the ocean, is by eating fish. Globally, fish provides nearly 7% of all protein consumed. There’s a need for greater stewardship of... [ view full abstract ]

For many of the world’s citizens, the closest they come to marine conservation, or even the ocean, is by eating fish. Globally, fish provides nearly 7% of all protein consumed. There’s a need for greater stewardship of these resources under pressure, and seafood consumers could play a key role in promoting sustainability through purchasing power and supporting eNGOs. If we understand what motivates consumers, we can tailor marine science messages to resonate with different segments of this audience and engage more effectively.

Certification and rating schemes have been identified as one tool to incentivise harvesters and retailers to shift towards sustainability. The Marine Stewardship Council ecolabel program is designed to incentivise improved fishing practices by working with retailers to leverage consumer power at scale. We want to understand how to engage seafood consumers who might not typically pay attention to ocean health issues so they can leverage further change.

In 2016 independent research and insights company GlobeScan carried out the largest ever global analysis of attitudes to seafood consumption, finding that sustainability is a key driver for purchase. This talk will present new results from the 2018 survey, providing insights into the values and perceptions of seafood consumers around the world. It will explore how receptive seafood consumers are to sustainability, marine science messages and associated behavioural change in the context of ecolabeling, and will address the growing focus on traceability and the eradication of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing from consumers and retailers.