The anchovies are caught in the North East Atlantic Ocean (FAO area 27) by approved vessels using purse seines which cause no impact to the seabed.
Anchovies (Engraulis encrasicolus) are neither overfished nor overexploited. Stock biomass has been above Biomass Limit Reference point since 2010 and it is presently at historical high levels (ICES, 2014).
Fishing is authorised only from March to the end of August. All boats are equipped with an electronic logbook. Anchovies swim in single species shoals, thus no other species is normally bycaught in the process.
“When choosing the most reliable sustainability certification program, we selected Friend of the Sea as it is applying the strictest criteria and its label is visible and respected in the markets we target,” explained Mr Francesc Ros of Frigorífics Ros.
“Anchovies fishing method is highly selective, energy efficient and it has negligible impact on the environment.”
