DEFRA and HM Revenue and Customs enforce strict controls on the import and marketing of animals and animal products from species classified as endangered under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
The Public Sector Food Procurement Initiative has for some time been providing advice and guidance in sustainable sourcing of food, including fish, for the public sector for example by reference to the Marine Stewardship Council’s Eco-label scheme and equivalent certification schemes that meet the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. Public sector procurement guidance also refers to the IUCN red list as being definitive on endangered species.
In moving forward with this agenda, we are working with the Office of Government Commerce to embed into the Collaborative Food Procurement Programme best practice on sustainability and environmental awareness including the conservation status of commonly eaten fish and seafood. The aims of this programme are to encourage greater collaboration between public sector buyers to achieve efficiency cost savings and to embed the use of sustainability criteria in the contract award process for the procurement of food by the public sector.