The South African company Abagold was audited, in 2015, by an independent certification body and was found fully compliant with all the strict Friend of the sea criteria for sustainable aquaculture. Abagold is the first abalone company in the world to be awarded the Friend of the Sea certification. Certified products – sold locally and in export markets, including Hong Kong and Singapore – will now proudly carry the Friend of the Sea international eco-label.
Abagold is located in Hermanus and operates on four farms: Sea View, Amaza, Sulumanzi and Bergsig. The four aquaculture sites combined comprise 10 hectares and house over 2,000 land-based tanks. All potential environmental impacts are managed and professionally controlled, preventing any impact on the surrounding ecosystem. No change or alteration which could have negatively affected the environment occurred during and after the construction of all the various sites.
“Abalone have been identified as one of the many classes of organism threatened with extinction due to overfishing, acidification of oceans” explains Dr Bray, director of Friend of the Sea. “Farming abalone can decrease the fishing pressure and help recovery.”
“Abagold applied for Friend of the Sea certification, as we are fully committed to the environment and we consider the organisation to be the most reliable measure of such sustainability standards. Abagold is the first abalone company in the world to achieve this certification. This is a very clear message for our customers and consumers regarding our commitment to marine habitat conservation,” says Mr. Werner Piek, the Marketing manager at Abagold.
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Abagold Ltd.
Abagold produces abalone, the world’s most desirable seafood, in close harmony with nature at the most southern tip of Africa. The pristine cool water of the Atlantic Ocean provides all the necessary nutrients for the cultivation of the highest quality abalone. The company exports live, canned and dried abalone from it’s ISO 22000 accredited production facility all over the world and builds lasting relationships with loyal clients.
Abagold also produces top quality aquatic feeds through subsidiary, Specialised Aquatic Feeds (Pty) Ltd. In addition, their investment in Mean Sea Level (Pty) Ltd gives exposure to alternative energy solutions, specifically, generation of electricity through harnessing wave energy as well as energy recovery.
www.abagold.co.za
info@abagold.co.za
Friend of the Sea
Friend of the Sea is an international certification program for products from sustainable fisheries and aquaculture. Over 450 companies in more than 50 countries have relied on Friend of the Sea to assess the sustainability of their seafood origins. Audits, based on best and most updated available scientific data, are run by accredited independent certification bodies.
info@friendofthesea.org
www.friendofthesea.org
