Cardiff Students Lead City To A Sustainable Fish Star

The majority of Cardiff’s students are now dining on Sustainable Fish as Cardiff Metropolitan University sign the Sustainable Fish Cities pledge [1], earning the city its third star out of the five required to become a Sustainable Fish City. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The 14,000 students of Cardiff Met will benefit from its latest food policy which is now subject to the Sustainable Fish Cities pledge. This ensures that all fish on sale within the University is from verifiably sustainable sources, protecting vulnerable marine environments and reducing impact upon our depleting fish stocks, while supporting sustainable fishermen and farmers. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Cardiff Met’s new fish sourcing policy means that with immediate effect, they have stopped sourcing products considered endangered according to the Marine Conservation Society’s Good Fish Guide (rated ‘5’) [2], and will always consider which products are most sustainable by applying the MCS’s traffic-light rating when they buy fish. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Andrew Phelps, Catering & Hospitality Service Manager at Cardiff Metropolitan University said: ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

“Students and visitors of Cardiff Met expect the best and serving sustainable food is a very important part of that. It hasn’t been difficult to implement the pledge because there are lots of sustainable fish options available now. Sustainable fish is an incredibly important issue and everyone should support this by making informed decisions.” ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Signing the Sustainable Fish Cities pledge is the latest action as part of their successful Sustainability Action Plan [3]. The plan outlines annual targets for improvement including minimising the waste of food and energy, increasing the campus’ biodiversity and ensuring sustainable sourcing. Their annual Environmental & Sustainability Policy Reports have highlighted their continued success in fulfilling their ambition of becoming one of the UK’s leading Sustainable Universities through the review and devlopment of its environmental credentials. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

Cardiff Met join a host of other Cardiff based higher educational units, including Cardiff University and The University of South Wales, to collectively earn a Sustainable Fish Cities star for Higher Education. This is the third star in recognition of Cardiff’s sustainable fish policy, adding to the previous stars awarded for demonstrably sustainable fish served in the majority Hospitals and Local Authorities and Schools. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

This pledge is a major boost for Cardiff as a city, which is aiming to become a Sustainable Fish City as part of an initiative run by Food Cardiff [4]. The Sustainable Fish Cities campaign aims to see only verifiably sustainable fish on menus in the UK. It is currently rolled out across in 16 towns and cities as part of the UK’s Sustainable Food Cities network [5]. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​