The Marine Stewardship Council and Developing Countries - SEAFOOD Ecolabelling: Principles and Practice - page 304

although couched in a discourse of conservation, MSC was one of the instruments
used to justify positions in debates that had race relations and possible redress of
past wrongs under apartheid as the main issues at stake. It was played as a tool to
prevent the redistribution of quotas away from main, white-owned, quota holders
to the possible benefit of black-owned smaller quota holders and new entrants
within the deep-sea hake sector. It was also used as a tool to avoid redistribution
of quota away from the large, mainly white-owned, deep-sea trawling sector to the
advantage of the mostly black-owned longlining sector, although these processes
are not of MSC's making. It is clear that the local politics and the political economy
of conservation do matter for the process of 'sustainability' certifications.
Developing countries fisheries and small-scale ones in particular, appear to have
been marginalised in the MSC system. Only three fisheries in South Africa, Ar-
gentina and Mexico have been certified up to early 2007. Delivering 'sustainability'
at no additional cost and in large volumes demands standards that are tough in terms
of systems compliance, but actually quite approachable in terms of the thresholds
of sustainability indicators. Entry barriers to 'sustainability' entail economies of
scale and scope that require managerial resources and access to networks. Because
managerial and systemic objectives are harder for developing country actors to
match, this creates a hidden imbalance in favour of more endowed participants.
Therefore, dedicated standard thresholds, compliance and verification systems for
developing countries and small-scale producers are needed, not only special flexi-
bilities. Until this happens and until premiums are paid at the producer level, MSC
and similar initiatives will keep putting sustainability at the service of commercial
interests.
References
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http://www.msc.org/assets/docs/Resources/MSC Environmental Benefits Report
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Cummins, A. (2004) The Marine Stewardship Council: A multi-stakeholder approach to
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