Mowi has been ranked the most sustainable protein producer for the third year in a row by the award-nominated Coller FAIRR Protein Producer Index, published December 1st.

This research, now in its fourth edition, assesses 60 of the largest listed global meat, dairy and aquaculture companies on ten environmental, social and governance themes aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Overall, Mowi scored 81 out of 100 and was rated ‘Industry Best’ against many of the criteria aligned to the SDGs, including greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation and biodiversity, use of antibiotics, animal welfare, working conditions, food safety and governance.

Speaking about Mowi’s ranking on the Coller FAIRR Protein Producer Index, CEO Ivan Vindheim said: “This shows again that Mowi is at the forefront of sustainable food production. I am proud and humbled to lead a company and an organisation that is a recognised leader in sustainable food production. Importantly, the Index highlights that aquaculture and salmon farming is part of the solution toward shifting to a green economy.”

Chief Sustainability and Technology Officer, Catarina Martins, added: “I am delighted to see Mowi’s sustainability strategy and achievements being recognised in this global rating. For three years in a row now, Mowi is considered the most sustainable animal protein producer in the world. This achievement is the result of hard work and passion for what we do every day: producing food that is good for people and good for the planet!”

 

Focus on aquaculture

The 2021 report found that aquaculture companies, primarily salmon companies, continue to perform better than land animal protein producers on all risk factors, especially deforestation and biodiversity and antibiotics. On average, aquaculture also shows the most improvement year on year, demonstrating the sector’s focus on managing its sustainability risks versus its land-based peers. Companies headquartered in Europe are paying more attention to deforestation and antibiotic risks, making them the strongest performing region. In fact, Mowi is joined in the top five ranked companies by fellow aquaculture companies Grieg Seafood ASA and Lerøy Seafood Group ASA, both headquartered in Norway, who are ranked 2nd and 4th respectively.

About the Coller FAIRR Index

The Index is designed to provide financial institutions with best-in-class data, analytics and trends on the protein sector to integrate into their investment decisions and engagement strategies and is positively shaping trends in the $1.6 trillion global protein market, by shedding light on where corporate policy or disclosure is behind the curve. It has become the go-to resource for investors to assess how well key suppliers in the food chain are managing environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks:

  1. Greenhouse gas emissions
  2. Deforestation & biodiversity
  3. Water use & scarcity
  4. Waste & pollution
  5. Antibiotics
  6. Working conditions
  7. Animal welfare
  8. Food safety
  9. Governance
  10. Sustainable proteins

Click here for more information about the Coller FAIRR Index

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We’re proud to report that we have held our position at the top of the league table of sustainable protein producers compiled by the FAIRR Initiative, published recently.

Coller FAIRR Protein Producer Index assesses the world’s 60 largest publicly-listed animal protein producers, worth a combined USD 338 billion. Firms are ranked against ten environmental, social and governance (ESG)-related criteria including GHG emissions, deforestation, antibiotic usage and working conditions.

“The fact that Mowi is one of only three companies to be ranked as low risk is a testament to the vision of our leadership team and the commitment of everybody at Mowi to execute this vision. 2020 has been and continues to be a challenging year for all businesses but as we approach the end of the year, I hope that this achievement instils a sense of pride with every member of staff,” says our CEO Ivan Vindheim.

Climate commitments

The authors of the Index were disappointed by the overall progress made by other sectors, especially meat and dairy suppliers, towards climate commitments. 86% of major meat and dairy suppliers failed to declare or set meaningful reduction targets for all greenhouse gas emissions.

Catarina Martins, Chief Sustainability Officer, explained Mowi’s progress against stated climate commitments: “We have adopted a global approach to climate change, through the development of a low-carbon business model. We have developed a low carbon transition plan which includes a comprehensive evaluation of our impact on climate change, relevant climate-related risks and opportunities, as well as proposals for climate change mitigation measures. We continue to work towards these targets and be transparent about our progress.”

Click here for a summary report of the FAIRR Index

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June 8 is World Oceans Day. The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is launching a new global digital campaign on this day, to help consumers understand that their daily buying habits are having a big impact.

Oceans have been described as the lungs of our planet: they provide oxygen for breathing and regulate the climate. They contain 80 percent of our world’s biodiversity. The oceans feed over 3 billion people across the world every day. For us to live, they need the oceans to thrive, now and in the future. However, more than 30% of the oceans are overfished.

By choosing products with the blue MSC label, you choose against overfishing and for sustainably caught fish and seafood. Small choices help protect our oceans and create a ‘big blue future’.

When selecting and choosing products our focus is therefore on sustainable fishery and aquaculture methods and on safeguarding biodiversity. To achieve this we actively cooperate with a network of suppliers, customers, researchers and universities at home and abroad. This way we aim to make an active contribution to new environmentally and socially sustainable developments.

By far the largest part of the fish species that are processed by Mowi Lemmer are from MSC certified sustainable fisheries or from ASC certified responsible aquaculture. Our product range offers a large number of products which have been certified according to independent standards for sustainable fisheries (MSC) or responsible aquaculture (ASC).

Mowi Lemmer holds ‘chain-of-custody’ certificates for MSC, ASC and GLOBALG.A.P. , which ensure that the products we sell with one of these labels are really coming from certified sustainable fisheries or certified responsible farms.

 

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Thanks to the installation of a high-performance flexible production line at Mowi Lemmer, we have enlarged our offer of top-quality seafood products with a range of  “Assembly-Ready” frozen fish products which are specifically designed for regeneration.
The “Assembly-Ready” fish products allow regeneration or professional kitchens to assemble the components immediately in their kitchen. These products are also suitable for various industrial applications, such as ready-made meals.

For an overview of our “Assembly-Ready” range, please go to the Products page and select product type “Assembly-Ready” .

What makes us unique
With minimal moisture loss, our frozen fish products are known to be juicy, savoury and tasty. Our portions come in ideally sized servings at an excellent price-quality ratio.
Our wide range of high-quality products is procured from specialized raw material partners according to a sustainable approach. Mowi’s comprehensive quality system ensures optimal food safety.

With our high-performance flexible production line we can prepare any type and form of fish according to the right cooking method. Our “Assembly-Ready” product range offers steamed or baked natural fish products as well as coated products. Natural raw products are steamed or baked in our specially designed oven. The breaded, battered or dusted products are pre-fried in sunflower oil and cooked in the specially designed oven. Immediately after the cooking process, the products are frozen and packed.

Note:
Assembly-Ready products are not suitable for ready-to-eat consumption. If ready-to-eat products are requested, please contact us, as we have the technology available.

 

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On September 4, the 2019 Coller FAIRR Protein Producer Index has been released, which analyses the 60 largest listed producers of animal proteins (meat, dairy and aquaculture) for human consumption globally by combining nine environmental, social and governance (ESG) risk factors with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Index is the world’s only benchmark dedicated to profiling animal protein producers. It shows critical gaps and areas of best practice in the sector.

The nine risk and opportunity factors assessed by the Index include:

  1. Food safety
  2. Waste and pollution
  3. Working conditions
  4. Water scarcity
  5. Antibiotics
  6. Greenhouse gas emissions
  7. Sustainable proteins
  8. Animal welfare
  9. Deforestation and biodiversity loss

We cooperated closely with the assessors throughout the process. Alf-Helge Aarskog, Mowi’s CEO, said: “To be ranked as the best performer on this global index is a fantastic achievement for Mowi and proof that social responsibility and sustainability is embedded in every level of our business and part of our culture. We will continue to strive for continuous improvement and lead the Blue Revolution.”

The final company rankings are based on some exceptional realisations:

  • We were recognised as one of few organisations for our commitment to set a science-based target for greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
  • Our efforts for animal welfare and certification in Scotland have been recognised as an exceptional realisation.
  • Our knowledge and experience to prevent sea lice have been highlighted as best practice within the sector.

Catarina Martins, Chief Sustainability Officer for the Mowi Group, added: “This is a great recognition of the work we do at Mowi to reduce our footprint and continue improving the way we operate.”

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After the success of its first Global Cleanup Day held in May 2018, it was decided to make this an annual tradition at Mowi. On May 3, a Mowi Lemmer team set out to take care of the Dutch contribution to this global initiative for a cleaner environment.

A larger area – less litter

Last year, the Lemmer colleagues collected over 100kg of litter from the Lemmer beach only. This year, the 8-person Cleanup team set out to first clean the Mowi Lemmer premises and then split up into two groups: two people removed the litter from the banks of the Lemmer marina, while the others took care of cleaning the beach. All in all, they found less litter than during their beach cleaning activities of last year, which is a positive signal!

 

Cleaning up around the world

Teams from Mowi sites around the world participated in Global Cleanup Day. A few impressions:

In one hour, Mowi Boulogne removed 100kg of litter from the local beach

Big bags of litter – Mowi Canada-East

Cleanup Day in Poland on their national holiday: a real family effort with an impressive result: almost 1000kg of rubbish collected in Gdansk

Mowi Chile staff working hard to clean up a local beach

 Recently published: Mowi’s policy on plastic use and plastics waste management

Mowi depends on healthy oceans. Next to making our Global Cleanup Day a recurring event, Mowi recently also published a policy on plastic use and plastics waste management, in order to  reduce the use of plastic, to make sure that plastic waste is handled in a responsible manner and to ensure that our sites are kept clean.

Reduce, reuse, recycle: Managing plastic

Do you want to know more about some of Mowi’s initiatives to reduce, reuse and recycle plastic? You’ll find some interesting stories about reducing the weight of plastic trays and upcycling of used salmon farming nets on Mowi’s corporate website.

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The annual Seafood Expo Global fair in Brussels is coming up. From May 7-9 2019, Mowi Lemmer will be present, as part of Mowi ASA, among more than 1,900 exhibiting companies from 78 countries. The SEG is also known as the world’s largest seafood trade fair.

A new name means also a new stand design! Visit us at Hall 8 on booth 5-545.

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Marine Harvest Sterk wishes you a merry Christmas, a happy new year and an excellent 2019!

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November 13, 2018 – Marine Harvest today launched a global brand called MOWI, and further to this, is changing its company name to Mowi.

Mowi is strongly rooted in the history of the company. The company we know as Marine Harvest today was originally founded as Mowi by Norwegian aquaculture pioneers more than 50 years ago.

“I am really excited that we are now taking the company to the next level. Through implementing our MOWI branding strategy, we can communicate our integrated value-chain from feed to the consumer’s plate. We are looking forward to announcing our new MOWI product line in the coming months”, says Alf-Helge Aarskog, CEO of Marine Harvest.

The company will launch the MOWI brand into selected markets. The branded product line – yet to be announced – will provide customers added value in taste, convenience, nutrition and traceability.

“Mowi is an inspirational name that recalls our pioneering spirit that has developed over the past 50 years,” says Aarskog. “Since the first salmon was farmed in 1964, we have grown into a global fully integrated company, including breeding, feed, farming, processing and sales. Throughout the past 50 years, we have always remained true to our core value – the care we have for our people, our fish, our customers and the environment.”

The proposed name change is subject to shareholders’ approval, and the company has today summoned an Extraordinary General Assembly to resolve the name change with effect from 1 January 2019.

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We interviewed Andrei Kouznetsov, our purchasing director and expert regarding the fish & seafood supply chain on the remarkable trends in whitefish supply.

Reporter: Since the beginning of this year, we’ve noticed considerable increases in price and limitations in the supply of various whitefish species. What is going on in whitefish supply these days?

A.K.: We are indeed confronted with very strong price increases of the raw materials this year. It would take too long to review all species in detail, since whitefish is a large group of species, which we can subdivide into different origins: Northeast Atlantic, Pacific, wild versus farmed species…. But what is common for all species is that prices are determined by the worldwide market of supply and demand. On top of that, like in a system of communicating vessels, a price increase of one species will induce a shift in demand for another (cheaper) species.

We had indeed expected some pressure in 2018, because two very important species – Alaska pollock and cod, the two wild-caught species with by far the largest catch volumes – were both confronted with reductions of the quota. And this while demand has been rising since many years because of worldwide population growth and the rise of young dynamic economies, the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). These countries play an ever increasing role in the ‘battle’ for the available volumes. A development which we had not seen coming is the sudden demand for whole pangasius from China, which is now taking an important part of the available volumes against conditions which are attractive for the farmers.

Reporter: So for Alaska pollock and cod we should in any case expect price increases?

Kabeljauw Delight

A.K.: Indeed, the price development of cod can even be called explosive. On the one hand we can certainly say the market is overheated, but on the other hand we have not yet reached historically high price records. The current price levels are not uncommon and there certainly is room for further price increases. For Alaska pollock the situation is similar, but in that case the exchange rate risk is playing an important part. A strong or weak dollar can either completely neutralize a raw material price increase, or reinforce it enormously. This year, we have not been helped by a weak dollar.

Reporter: In this situation, what are we doing to control these effects and price increases?

A.K.: In such turbulent times, information and long-term vision are essential. Thanks to our network of long-term relationships and high-quality partners we have access to early knowledge about market developments and can take these into account as well as possible, together with our producers and suppliers. Our procurement strategy is completely founded on a long-term approach with reliable and high-quality partners which can guarantee the necessary supply to us and which allow us to work our way around fluctuations in the market to the best of our ability. In the longer run we can of course not escape these upward trends and market price levels, but a good supply management in relation to availability allows us to prevent surprises.

Reporter: What are your expectations for 2019 and beyond?

A.K.: You ask me to consult my crystal ball? We know that supply will not increase: the wild-catch quota will not increase and farming cannot grow fast enough to fulfil the strong increase in demand. Fish and seafood are very healthy food sources and this translates into a strong demand!

For the rest, it’s like reading the tea leaves: at which price level will demand for cod start to go down? Will consumers refrain from buying it? Will producers of derived product switch to alternative raw materials? What will be the further demand development of China and other new markets? What will be the situation of the various farmed fish species? There are the global warming and climate change phenomena which may undermine so many traditional securities. Year after year there are completely disrupted catches or absences of fish stocks, or we are confronted with growth slowing down or other farming issues. Also, anyone will agree that predicting the evolution of the dollar has become completely impossible, not to mention macro-economic issues like the risk of trade wars.

With all this in mind, it is absolutely impossible to get and to give prices which are fixed for several years.

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Mowi Group has operations around the world

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