Waitrose stops selling popular fish in all UK stores from April 29

Supermarket giant Waitrose will remove a popular fish from all its UK stores from Wednesday, April 29, following concerns over the future of the fishing industry.

The supermarket will no longer sell mackerel and will pull the fish from its shelves at the end of this month due to overfishing concerns.

The retailer said it was the first UK supermarket to suspend supplies of mackerel from Scottish waters, with supplies of fresh, chilled and frozen mackerel suspended until April 29 and supplies of tinned mackerel suspended after existing stocks were exhausted.

This change follows the failure of Governments to reduce catches to levels recommended by scientists to ensure sustainable fisheries and stop mackerel stocks being depleted.

Environmentalists have welcomed Waitrose’s move to remove mackerel from shelves and called on other supermarkets to follow suit.

This week, the Marine Conservation Charity issued a warning about cod levels, urging shoppers to stop buying cod due to concerns about the future of cod populations.

While overfishing has led to depletion of mackerel stocks in the Northeast Atlantic, Ices said the species, and the fishing industry more broadly, could face long-term risks unless countries comply with recommended catch limits.

Waitrose said the decision in December to cut mackerel catches by four coastal states by 48% was a step forward but still did not meet recommendations.

The retailer said its Northeast Atlantic mackerel would no longer meet the supermarket’s responsible sourcing requirements in line with the Sustainable Seafood Coalition’s code of conduct.

Jake Pickering, head of agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries at Waitrose, said: “By suspending the supply of mackerel at Waitrose, we are strengthening our ethical and sustainable business commitments by taking action to tackle overfishing and protect the long-term health of our oceans and this important fish.

“Our customers trust us to source responsibly and we keep a close eye on fisheries.

“We look forward to bringing mackerel back to our shelves once it meets our high sourcing standards.”

Alternatively, Waitrose is launching a new range of fish products, including hot-smoked herring, hot-smoked peppered herring and hot-smoked sweet sea bass, all Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified.

The retailer said it will also introduce MSC-certified frozen sardines from May as a sustainable alternative to frozen mackerel and plans to become the first retailer to sell 100% MSC canned sardines.

Waitrose said it would continue its relationship with mackerel suppliers and new supplies of herring, sea bass, sardines and trout would come from existing supplier partnerships.

However, there is currently no set timeframe for when Waitrose will start supplying mackerel again.

Marija Rompani, director of ethics and sustainability at the John Lewis Partnership, which owns Waitrose, said: “We believe sustainable food production should balance climate action, nature conservation and responsible fish sourcing is fundamental to protecting our oceans.

“We will continue to work closely with suppliers and industry partners to support the recovery and responsible management of fish stocks.”

Charles Clover, co-founder of the conservation charity Blue Marine Foundation, said mackerel, one of the largest remaining commercial fish stocks in the north-east Atlantic, has fallen by 75 per cent in the last 10 years due to overfishing by fishing countries, including the UK.

“They have made little effort to agree on a sharing arrangement, and some countries are giving themselves more quotas than the science justifies,” he said.

“This crisis has been ignored for too long.

“We hope this action by Waitrose will move the issue to the top of the political agenda. We urge other retailers to follow Waitrose’s example.”