Walmart following current of seafood sustainability

Greenpeace has released its latest "Carting Away the Ocean" report, and Walmart should be pleased with where it ranked on the list. With a score of 5, Walmart placed 12th (out of 20), just hight enough to earn an, or "passing," rating. While that may not seem so great, it is important to keep in mind that only two retailers, Safeway and Whole Foods received green, or "good" ratings for their scores of 7 and 7.1, respectively -- the first time any retailer has recieved such distinction.



Greenpeace commented that Walmart's progress has been slow, but commended the retailer for taking such action as ending the sale of the unsustainable species hoki.The company also scored points for improved sourcing, but Greenpeace wants Walmart to do more to improve sustainability in its shelf-stable products. Greenpeace applauded Walmart for working toward a goal of only selling sustainable seafood, but noted that the company still has a long way to go. At the time of the report, Walmart still sold 10 of the 22 "red," or unsustainable, species of fish including Alaskan pollock, Atlantic cod, Atlantic salmon, Atlantic sea scallops, bigeye tuna, ocean quahog, redfish, South Atlantic albacore tuna, tropical shrimp, and yellowfin tuna.



Overall, Greenpeace said the U.S. seafood retail industry has improved since 2008 when it first introduced its report. Still, with populations of the ocean’s apex predators (sharks, tuna, swordfish and similar animals) falling by 90% in recent years and unsustainable fishing practices still being used across the globe, much remains to be done.



Click here to read the full report.