Traceability is becoming an increasingly important issue, as consumers grow more conscious about the sustainability of global trade.
A key example is the ongoing push to improve traceability in the global fish trade—a move aimed at eliminating harmful practices such as overfishing, illegal catch, and even forced labour.
This issue is now under the spotlight again thanks to new draft guidance from the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), a global NGO currently consulting on recommendations for the fishing sector. Their proposals cover both food fisheries and the ornamental fish trade, with the goal of setting metrics to boost traceability and sustainability across the board.
In response, OATA has partnered with the European Pet Organization and Ornamental Fish International to provide feedback.
Improving traceability within the ornamental aquatics industry is certainly an idea worth exploring. In fact, many forward-thinking businesses in our sector are already looking into how they can do just that. However, the approach set out in this document simply isn’t right for our industry.
The proposed metrics may be suitable for large-scale food fisheries—but they are completely unworkable for the small, artisanal fisheries that supply live fish for home aquariums. It’s a one-size-fits-all approach that fails to reflect the reality of our sector.
This is exactly the kind of issue trade associations like OATA exist to address. Whether guidance comes from governments or NGOs, we’re here to ensure our industry’s voice is heard—and to challenge proposals that are unrealistic, unfair, or ill-informed.
“Unfortunately, this is a case where a large intergovernmental organisation is attempting to impose burdensome, bureaucratic rules on an industry it doesn’t fully understand. Our job is to challenge that, and we’re committed to working with TNFD to improve these proposals so they make sense for our sector.”
