Founded in 2003, FishWise is a non-profit sustainable seafood consultancy that partners with retailers, seafood companies, and hospitality providers to develop, implement, and amplify responsible business practices throughout the seafood sector. Headquartered in the U.S., FishWise offers expertise in a wide range of areas, including supply chain traceability, countering illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing (IUU), human and labor rights, and ocean conservation. Over the years, FishWise has evolved into a leader in the field of seafood traceability, scaling its efforts through groundbreaking initiatives such as the Seafood Alliance for Legality and Traceability (SALT), a six-year public-private partnership with USAID. Through these efforts, FishWise has been instrumental in building a global community of governments, industry stakeholders, and non-governmental organizations to collaborate on solutions for legal and sustainable seafood, with a particular focus on electronic traceability.
Why Digital Seafood Traceability Matters
Digital seafood traceability is central to FishWise’s work. As a data-driven organization, FishWise recognizes that traceability is the foundation for effective supply chain due diligence. Traceability enables companies to verify the legality of their seafood sourcing, validate sustainability claims, identify risks, and maintain greater oversight across their business operations. As seafood supply chains grow in complexity and transparency becomes more critical, FishWise understands the growing need to standardize recommendations for interpreting and acting upon traceability data. Through tools like the Vessel Risk Dashboard, FishWise takes traceability data a step further by using it to create actionable intelligence that informs due diligence efforts to combat IUU fishing and forced labor in the seafood sector.
Supporting the Seafood Sector
FishWise is uniquely positioned within the seafood industry due to its deep knowledge of traceability and sustainability challenges. The organization is one of the few NGOs with firsthand experience in implementing traceability programs with major seafood buyers. FishWise leverages this expertise to share pragmatic perspectives and lessons learned with a broader community of stakeholders, including the GDST. The organization works closely with the GDST to overcome sector-wide challenges, particularly the need for standardized and interoperable traceability solutions. FishWise’s collaborative approach with the GDST helps ensure that businesses, regulators, and other stakeholders across the seafood supply chain can adopt consistent, efficient, and transparent practices that align with global sustainability goals.
Impact of GDST on the Sector
For over 20 years, FishWise has used seafood sourcing data as the foundation for its sustainable seafood programs with business partners. In the early days, however, FishWise faced critical challenges in accessing and verifying product sourcing information. Most businesses in the supply chain relied on paper-based tracking methods, making it difficult to ensure the authenticity and integrity of the data. Recognizing the need for digital, interoperable traceability, FishWise found that the GDST provided a game-changing solution. By developing a common language and framework for digital traceability, GDST has brought stakeholders together to overcome the barriers to data sharing and ensure a consistent approach to traceability across the industry. FishWise’s partnership with GDST helps drive the adoption of these standards, enabling a more transparent, accountable, and efficient seafood sector.
Long-Term Goals and Vision
FishWise’s long-term goal is to help facilitate the widespread implementation of the GDST standard so that interoperable traceability becomes the norm in seafood sourcing. By working with GDST and other stakeholders, FishWise aims to create a global traceability system that enhances transparency, improves compliance with regulations, and supports sustainability in the seafood sector. Additionally, FishWise is passionate about co-developing a dialogue process around social accountability and labor rights in the seafood industry. The organization is committed to showcasing how the private sector can leverage GDST’s standards to combat labor abuses and promote ethical sourcing practices in seafood supply chains. For FishWise, success means seeing broad adoption of traceability standards that not only improve operational efficiencies but also contribute to the long-term sustainability of marine ecosystems and the seafood industry as a whole.
Advice for Potential GDST Partners
FishWise encourages potential GDST partners to actively engage in the working groups, discussions, and dialogues that shape the future of seafood traceability standards. By participating, partners have the opportunity to help shape the evolution of the standards, accelerate adoption, and contribute to the creation of a more transparent and responsible seafood industry. FishWise believes that collaboration is key to overcoming the complex challenges in seafood traceability and encourages organizations to join the GDST movement to drive global change.
You can learn more about FishWise at: FishWise Website
Explore the benefits of GDST partnership at: GDST Get Involved