GSA Publishes 2021 Annual Report
The Global Seafood Alliance (GSA) on August 31, 2022, published its 2021 Annual Report.
The 2021 Annual Report, which is GSA’s first digital-only Annual Report, reaffirms GSA’s commitment to its mission of being “dedicated to advancing responsible seafood practices through education, advocacy and third-party assurances”, to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as well as the nonprofit organization’s commitment to serving its individual and corporate members and its more than 3,100 certified facilities and vessels. Approximately 305,000 people are employed by BAP-certified facilities across 39 countries, which produced an estimated 23 billion meals (based on a 4-ounce serving).
“The spirit of activism and mission has driven the Global Seafood Alliance since its founding 25 years ago,” GSA President George Chamberlain shared in his welcome message of the report. “With your support, we haven’t been daunted by those who said it couldn’t be done. We just took the first steps, adjusted as needed, and then took the next and the next. We’ve come a long way in 25 years, and we’re still crazy enough to think we can change the world. There’s so much opportunity to help seafood production grow responsibly to its full potential!”
Each accomplishment outlined in the 2021 Annual Report aligns with one of the core three components of GSA’s mission, falling under education, advocacy or demonstration through third-party assurances.
Among the accomplishments are:
• Last year saw the rebranding effort to completion, as a result of launching the Best Seafood Practices (BSP) program. Global Aquaculture Alliance is now officially Global Seafood Alliance, and has been operating as such since September 2021. While still fully dedicated to advancing responsible aquaculture practices, GSA has added and will continue to add parallel programs to support responsible fishing practices, bringing together wild and farmed seafood sectors through its industry-convening activities.
• Advocacy: GSA’s membership program boasts over 7,500 members and partners, with over 45 corporate members. One project highlighted in the Annual Report is lifting up small-scale farmers, a project to facilitate the formation of clusters of small farms to increase their collective harvest volume. This project supports two of GSA’s priority UN SDGs, no. 8 and 12.
• Education: GSA’s annual GOAL conference was rebranded as GOAL: The Responsible Seafood Conference in 2020 when wild-capture fisheries, ocean health and climate change began to be incorporated into the program. In 2021, GOAL was fully virtual, hosting virtual sessions on a monthly basis throughout the year. The Advocate magazine experienced tremendous growth (a 19% increase in pageviews from 2020), and the Aquademia Podcast’s average episode download rate increased by 27% from 2020.
• Demonstration: In 2021, the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) program continued to grow, reaching a 93.6% retention rate, with an 8.6% year-over-year growth in producers. The BAP program launched a market research campaign to gain insights into consumer behavior with regard to seafood shopping and the BAP label. The Annual Report has the full breakdown of the market research insights.
Though the organization is best known for its BAP third-party certification program and its media, events and membership, GSA is constantly evolving. In 2022, GSA is celebrating 25 years of building trust in seafood – stay tuned for our 25th anniversary celebration!
Click here, or on one of the images below to access the 2021 Annual Report.
Do you want to support the work outlined in our Annual Report? Become a member of GSA today!
