ARLINGTON, VA — November 21, 2008 — The Food Marketing Institute (FMI) announced today that it is developing guidelines, best practices, case studies and other resources to help the supermarket industry address seafood sustainability issues.

     “We seek to provide a wide variety of seafood to help consumers maintain a healthy diet, while also recognizing that sustaining the world’s fisheries is critical to preserving the environment,” said Leslie G. Sarasin, FMI president and CEO.

     FMI is taking a series of actions to promote seafood sustainability:

• Its Sustainability Task Force formed a working group to identify issues that can be resolved on an industrywide basis. This group is consulting with the Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions, composed of the world’s leading environmental organizations and is developing guidelines to help companies create seafood sustainability programs.
• The FMI Sustainable Seafood Working Group is gathering case studies of retailer best practices, including initiatives certified by independent agencies and developed with non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
• The FMI Sustainable Seafood Working Group is also compiling a list of experts, certification and auditing bodies, government agencies, NGOs and other resources with whom retailers can consult.


The resource list is posted on the FMI website at www.fmi.org/sustainability, and the case studies will be posted there.

FMI’s Broad Range of Sustainability Initiatives
The seafood initiative is one of many FMI sustainability policies and programs. Others include:

     FMI Carbon Footprint Project — A Sustainability Task Force working group is developing guidelines and a carbon footprint calculator for food retailers and wholesalers.

     FMI Policy on Plastic Bag Waste and Litter — Approved by the FMI Board of Directors in May 2008, this policy promotes comprehensive recycling programs, reusable shopping bags and other measures to reduce shopping bag waste (www.fmi.org/about/?fuseaction=policy_statements).

     The Sustainability Opportunity for Retail and Wholesale Executives — This presentation explains the concept and its importance to food retailers and wholesalers. Companies can customize this document for internal use. (Available free-of-charge on the FMI website.)

     Sustainability Starter Kit — Retailers and wholesalers can use this guide to integrate sustainability strategies throughout their business operations. It features practical tips, best practices, numerous examples of successful programs and a list of publications, experts, websites, organizations, conferences and other sources of sustainability information and guidance.

     Visit www.fmi.org/sustainability/ for a complete list of FMI’s sustainability resources, including extensive research on consumer attitudes about sustainability issues.