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VeriFish at Conxemar 2024: Promoting Responsibility and Sustainability in Fisheries and Aquaculture

VeriFish attended Conxemar 2024, an event organized by FAO and Conxemar, focusing on the theme of “Responsibility for the Future” in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors. This congress provided a platform for discussing the global outlook of the seafood industry, sustainable resource management, and the challenges of communicating responsible practices in the face of climate change. VeriFish’s presence at the event emphasized its commitment to promoting sustainability and responsible consumption practices in seafood production.

Conxemar 2024 brought together industry leaders, policymakers, and international stakeholders to explore the future of fisheries and aquaculture. Central to this year’s discussions was the idea of responsibility in managing marine resources and ensuring sustainability throughout the value chain. The event kicked off with the presentation of the SOFIA Report 2024, offering a comprehensive overview of the current state of the global fisheries industry and highlighting the trends, challenges, and opportunities for the years to come.

Key messages during the Conxemar 2024 Congress

Key sessions during the congress focused on sustainable fisheries resource management, policy challenges, and the innovation required along the value chain to meet the demands of a growing global population. VeriFish engaged deeply in these discussions, gaining valuable insights into how different stakeholders are addressing the global sustainability challenges facing the seafood sector. One of the more significant themes at the event was the role of climate change and how it impacts both fisheries and aquaculture. A lively debate unfolded around the responsibility of communication in shaping public perception of sustainability, underlining the media’s role in promoting informed and responsible consumer choices.

VeriFish flyers at the GLOBEFISH-FAO stand in Conxemar 2024

VeriFish was also showcased at the FAO-GLOBEFISH stand. This opportunity arose through our partner Eurofish International Organisation, which is part of the INFOFISH network. The FAO-GLOBEFISH stand provided a platform for showcasing VeriFish’s ongoing work in developing verifiable sustainability indicators aimed at fostering responsible seafood production and consumption. By being featured in this prominent setting, VeriFish demonstrated the importance of clear, reliable data in helping consumers and stakeholders make informed decisions.

VeriFish’s work at the Conxemar Fair underscored the growing need for better information systems to support sustainable aquafood practices. Verifiable data is essential for building trust and ensuring that both producers and consumers are aware of the impact of their choices on the environment and marine ecosystems. This engagement highlighted VeriFish’s role in developing tools that empower the industry to adopt responsible practices while providing transparency and actionable insights to end-users.

The Conxemar 2024 Congress and Fair reinforced the importance of responsibility, transparency, and innovation in the future of seafood production. For VeriFish, this event was an essential milestone in advancing its mission to promote sustainability across the seafood value chain. Through its engagement with industry leaders, stakeholders, and international organizations, VeriFish has strengthened its efforts to support informed, responsible consumption and production practices. As we look ahead, VeriFish remains committed to driving positive change by equipping consumers and the industry with the data and tools needed to make sustainable seafood the norm.

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David Bassett

Employed by EATiP since 2017, David is responsible for the day-to-day management and direction of this European wide multi-actor ETP. 

Working in the aquaculture industry since 2005, including a decade as the executive of a UK producer association, he has been active in numerous projects from the sixth Framework Programme. Among other roles, David has served as a director of the Scottish Aquaculture Research Forum and served on the Technical Advisory Group of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC TAG) alongside being invited as a guest lecturer at the Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling (UK).  

In addition to working on multiple Horizon Europe projects David is one of the Technical Experts assisting with the implementation of the EU Aquaculture Assistance Mechanism in addition to chairing the research focus group of the Aquaculture Advisory Council (AAC) and sitting on the Standing Committee on Agricultural Research – Fish Committee (SCAR-Fish). 

For further information on EATiP please see www.eatip.eu 

Paul Bulcock

Paul Bulcock is responsible for developing and maintaining aquaculture information in SFP’s systems (e.g., FishSource, AIP Directory, Metrics). He also supports development and implementation of aquaculture strategy through research and analysis.

Paul has extensive program support and aquaculture research experience (particularly in Southeast Asia), having worked for the Network of Aquaculture Centers in Asia-Pacific (NACA) and DFID’s Aquaculture and Fish Genetics Research Programme (AFGRP) at the Institute of Aquaculture, in Stirling, UK. He has an MSc in aquaculture from the University of Stirling and a BSc in marine and fisheries zoology from the University of Aberdeen.

Paul is based in the UK, in Glasgow, Scotland.

Fabio Grati

A fishery biologist presently employed at the National Research Council, Institute for Marine Biological Resources and Biotechnology (Ancona, Italy), he brings to the table more than thirty years of expertise in marine environmental conservation and sustainable resource management. Over the course of his career, he has overseen and participated in numerous international projects focused on understanding and mitigating anthropic impacts on marine ecosystems. Since 2019, he holds a membership in the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) under the European Commission. Within this role, he has chaired two STECF Expert Working Groups (EWG 22-12 and EWG 23-18), where he led efforts to establish scientifically robust yet accessible criteria and indicators for assessing the sustainability of fisheries products.

Andrea Fabris

Andrea Fabris born 11.08.1968, Italian, has a Veterinary Medicine full graduation achieved at the University of Parma. He has also a Specialization in “Farming, Hygiene, Pathology of Aquatic Species and Control of Derivative Products ” achieved at Udine University and a Specialization in “Animal Feeding” obtained at Bologna University.

Actually (from May 2016) he is Director of Associazione Piscicoltori Italiani (API – Italian Fish Farmers Association). At National level behalf of API he is member of some working groups at the General Direction for Fisheries and Aquaculture of Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Italian Ministry of Health regarding aquaculture EU rules and their implementation at national and regional level, and member of Exotic Species Aquaculture Committee – Italian Ministry of Agriculture. Lecturer on in training /courses organized by Ministry of Health, Universities and Local Veterinary Authorities; member of Board of Directors of SIPI (Italian Society of Fish Pathology).

He is also involved at international level with the Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP) as Chairman of FEAP Fish Health and Welfare Commission. Andrea is part of the FVE (Federation of Veterinarians Europe) Aquaculture Working Group, and of FishMedPlus Coalition, and from the beginning member of Aquaculture Advisory Council (AAC) where is actually Chair of WG1 – Finfish.

He published as an author or co-author about 30 articles on international and national scientific journals concerning Fish pathology and Aquaculture and more than 60 issues on divulgative (fishermen and aquaculture producers associations) publications

Anne Marie Cooper

Anne shapes global sustainable fisheries and aquaculture policies through her work at the science-policy interface. Driven by a commitment to improving human lives and aquatic ecosystems, she serves as the Professional Officer for Fisheries and Aquaculture Advice at the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) in Copenhagen, Denmark. Anne leads ICES’ efforts in developing and applying methods to provide scientific advice on data-limited fish and shellfish stocks in the Northeast Atlantic, covering over 60% of ICES stocks. She also heads the development of ICES’
advisory framework for sustainable aquaculture. Before joining ICES, Anne advised on national fisheries, aquaculture, climate, and marine science policy in the US Senate, House of Representatives, and NOAA. She holds a Ph.D. in Conservation Biology and Development Studies and Social Change Theory and an M.Sc. in Fisheries Science from the University of Minnesota.

Pedro Reis Santos

Pedro Reis Santos is Secretary General of the Market Advisory Council (MAC), a stakeholder-led advisory body to the European Commission and to the Member States on matters relevant for the EU market of fishery and aquaculture products, as foreseen by the Common Fisheries Policy Regulation.

Before his appointment, in July 2019, as Secretary General, Mr Reis Santos worked as a consultant for a Brussels-based business intelligence service monitoring EU developments on fisheries, agriculture, food, animal welfare, alcohol and tobacco policy. Prior to that, he was a trainee at the Fisheries Unit of the Council of the European Union and a trainee at the Control Unit of the Portuguese Fisheries Authority.

Mr Reis Santos holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law and a Master’s degree in International Law and International Relations from the University of Lisbon with a thesis titled “Marine Protected Areas beyond National Jurisdiction”. Besides his first language, Portuguese, he speaks English and Spanish

Irene Kranendonk

Irene Kranendonk is the Impact Manager at Fish Tales and a board member of the Fish Tales Foundation. Her work focuses on developing and guiding Fish Tales’ sourcing criteria including management of the environmental and social certification schemes. With the Fish Tales Foundation and local partner organizations, she drives social and environmental improvements in small scale fisheries. Irene holds a master’s degree from Wageningen University in Aquaculture and Marine Resource Management and is specialized in the field of fisheries ecology. In a previous role, Irene was sustainable seafood assessor for the Dutch seafood rating scheme the VISwijzer.