McDonald’s helping environment ‘one Filet-Of-Fish’ at a time

OAKBROOK, Illinois – In celebration of World Oceans Day, McDonald’s is doing its part to protect the oceans one Filet-O-Fish sandwich at a time.

Globally, McDonald’s Filet-Of-Fish only uses fish from fisheries that are certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). In some markets, like the U.S., McDonald’s has also undergone the Chain of Custody verification by MSC, which allows the chain’s fish menu items to carry the MSC blue eco seal. This seal means customers can feel confident the fish they are enjoying can be directly traced back to a sustainable sourced fishery.

McDonald’s has proved to be an influential leader in the seafood industry, helping move the U.S. and the rest of the world toward more sustainable fishing practices, according to Brian Perkins, regional manager for the Americas for MSC. The restaurant company’s clout comes from its position in the marketplace and its credibility with consumers, Perkins said.

“By serving sustainably caught fish, and promoting it on its menu, McDonald’s is introducing millions of people every day to the concept of sustainability, which is a great thing,” Perkins said.

McDonald’s has been committed to sustainable fishing practices for more than 13 years. In the United States, all of the fish in its Filet-O-Fish sandwiches are wild-caught Alaska Pollock. In fact, all of the white fish McDonald’s uses globally come from fisheries that meet the standard for certification set by the MSC. That means, the fish used in Filet-O-Fish sandwich anywhere in the world comes from a fishery that meets the following standards:

• They must be healthy and able to replenish themselves.
• They don’t cause any major damage to the environment.
• They must be regularly monitored and measured.

Filet-OF-Fish source traceable

In 2013 McDonald’s USA went a step further by adopting the MSC’s blue eco label, a special certification that guarantees a customer can actually trace the fish they are eating back to where it was caught in Alaska. McDonald’s is the only national restaurant chain in the U.S. to carry this MSC certification.

In May 2016, McDonald’s helped lead a proactive, industrywide agreement to prevent fishing in vulnerable areas of the Barents and Norwegian Seas, deepening is commitment to help protect fragile arctic marine habitats.