Tassal tackles expose-- Freshagenda

Freshagenda ‏@freshagenda2013 Oct 31
Did you see @4corners and @caromeldrum do a job on @TassalSalmon and @WWF_Australia last night? Here's our take

Tassal tackles expose
10/31/2016

Integrated salmon and seafood producer Tassal is the latest to receive the 4-Corners treatment with an expose on its production practices, treatment of competitors and apparent disregard for the environment.
In the lead up to a 4-Corners program on which it featured, Tassal Group Ltd released a 7-page statement to the ASX, explaining its farming and certification practices in detail. Tassal’s statement covers a range of questions from its Halal and Kosher certification, feed inputs, product labelling and the sustainability of its farming practices. Tassal took pains to explain its relationship with conservation group World Wildlife Fund Australia (WWF). Tassal claims it is working with WWF to improve sustainable practices. Tassal has noted that responses to most of 4-Corners’ questions can be found on its website as the company has pledged to take a “pro-active approach to disclosure”.
The story breathlessly discussed the inclusion of astaxanthin in fish feed, the reporter holding up a colour chart with a smug “gotcha” grin. Tassal’s website in fact provides extensive detail on astaxanthin, including the “disclosure” that it is the source of the flesh colour, as well as essential to salmon health. The website goes on to explain Tassal’s work with WWF-Australia to reduce the use of forage fish inputs in response to stakeholder requests and online with best practice certifications and the Aquaculture Stewardship Council.
Incidentally, astaxanthin is also an antioxidant used for treating Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, “brain attack” (stroke), high cholesterol, and an eye condition called age-related macular degeneration (AMD). It is also used for preventing cancer. Shocking stuff!
Tassal’s pre-emptive statement, its comprehensive website and its work on accreditation and sustainability didn’t stop the negative online response to the sensational story. The piece heavily featured Tassal competitors and angry locals opposed to fish farms in their backyard. Supportive locals were portrayed as Tassal stooges.
The fact that 4-Corners want to paint Tassal’s relationship with a (at least formerly) reputable conservation organisation such as WWF in a negative light leaves little room, in it’s view, for these collaborations to effect meaningful and credible improvements in sustainability. The fact that Tassal paid WWF to work with them ignores the fact that these organisations need to be connected and resourced to be effective. It seems according to the 4-Corners world view, these organisations can only be adversarial to food production and producers to be “real”.
The challenges for sustainable aquaculture are significant, and Tassal has arguably been the most successful and innovative operator to tackle it in this country – a small target for 4-Corners one would have thought. While there have no doubt been environmental impacts with these relatively new production systems, the type of attitude the 4-Corners encourages is that if you are a corporate and someone doesn’t want you in their environment – you are automatically evil. This is despite the considerable research and development work that Tassal has the wherewithal to invest in. It promotes the unrealistic consumer belief that their food should have zero impact, be hand raised by some salty local fisherman, and yet still be affordable.
These types of stories raise lots of questions, but in just an hour of prime-time TV can provide few answers. What is sustainable? Over-harvesting of wild fisheries? Raising salmon in someone else’s back yard with no accreditation at all? Around two thirds of Australia’s seafood consumption is already imported, mostly from Asia where the environmental impacts are unknown, and organisations like WWF are presumably much less involved – is this the preferred scenario? Tassal has also competed successfully for many years in a high-cost environment in the face of high-quality Scandinavian and Canadian imported salmon growing the local market and their share.
Despite Tassal opening their facilities and providing input to the 4-Corners story and their efforts toward sustainability and transparency their share price and sales will likely be affected, and consumer confidence in a healthy locally-produced food will be undermined. The price of success?
Disclosure: Freshagenda does not work for Tassal, we just find this stuff annoying


Link:
http://www.freshagenda.com.au/tassal-tackles-expose/