Seafood
Coles cares about how the seafood we sell is sourced and produced, recognising there are potential environmental impacts associated with seafood production. We recognise that there are potential environmental impacts associated with seafood production which may include overfishing, by-catch and illegal fishing. We continue to review the Coles Responsibly Sourced Seafood Program to help ensure these risks are mitigated for applicable Coles Own Brand products.
Nature-related risks in seafood sourcing
Coles recognises that we depend on healthy marine and freshwater ecosystems through our seafood supply chains, and that our sourcing decisions can influence biodiversity outcomes. We acknowledge key dependencies include healthy fish stocks at sustainable levels, functioning marine and freshwater ecosystems, water quality, and natural resources for feed production.
In FY26, Coles commissioned an independent assessment of nature-related risks in its Own Brand seafood supply chain, using 2025 sourcing and sales data. The assessment reviewed key species and sourcing locations, relevant nature-related risks, Coles’ seafood sourcing policies and certification requirements, and alignment with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) framework.
Approximately 60% of Coles seafood volume is farmed and 40% is wild caught. Key farmed species include Atlantic salmon, prawns, barramundi and basa sourced from Australia, Norway and Asia. Key wild-caught species include tuna, prawns, salmon and whitefish sourced from the Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, Alaska and South Africa.
Responsibly Sourced Seafood Program
Coles' Responsibly Sourced Seafood Program is supported by our Responsibly Sourced Seafood Policy and Supplier Requirements which covers both farmed (aquaculture) and wild-caught seafood for Coles Own Brand products. Our Policy and Requirements include the use of independent third-party certifications and independent assessments.
Our Responsibly Sourced Seafood Program recognises a range of certifications and assessment programs, helping provide assurance that seafood is from a well-managed and sustainable fishery or farm. This means the fishery or farm can maintain or increase production without impacting the structure and function of the surrounding ecosystem. The Program applies to fresh, thawed, frozen and canned seafood, and food products that contain seafood as a primary ingredient.1
1 Under the Coles Responsibly Sourced Seafood Program, Australian- and New Zealand–farmed bivalves are deemed responsibly sourced due to the low environmental impact of mollusc aquaculture and are not required to be certified to a third-party standard.
Wild-Caught SeafoodCollapsed
For wild-caught seafood Coles Own Brand products must be:
- Certified to the
Marine Stewardship Council
(MSC) Standards; or
- Independently assessed as meeting the Coles Wild Seafood Assessment Framework (Assessment Framework).
Wild-caught seafood products that carry the MSC logo are:
- sourced from fisheries that are assessed and certified by independent, third parties against the
MSC Fisheries Standard; and
- assessed against the
MSC Chain of Custody Standard
to ensure that these products are from MSC certified fisheries and are traceable and separated from non-certified products.
More about the MSC can be found on its
FAQ page.
Coles’ Assessment Framework was developed in collaboration with MRAG Asia Pacific (MRAG AP), an independent fisheries and aquatic resource consulting company. The program builds on the results of supply risk assessments for Coles Own Brand and deli seafood products carried out by WWF-Australia during 2011-2015.
In partnership with fisheries management authorities, all assessments are reviewed on an annual basis to reflect the most up-to-date knowledge. This annual review helps Coles to improve fisheries management and sustainability over time.
The Assessment Framework is structured around three core principles,
Principle 1: Sustainable target fish stocks: A fishery must be conducted in a manner that does not lead to over-fishing or depletion of the exploited populations and, for those populations that are depleted, the fishery must be conducted in a manner that demonstrably leads to their recovery.
Principle 2: Environmental impact of fishing: Fishing operations should allow for the maintenance of the structure, productivity, function and diversity of the ecosystem (including habitat and associated dependent and ecologically related species) on which the fishery depends.
Principle 3: Effective management: The fishery is subject to an effective management system that respects local, national and international laws and standards and incorporates institutional and operational frameworks that require use of the resource to be responsible and sustainable.
Wild-caught seafood products assessed against the Coles Assessment Framework are eligible to carry the Coles' Responsibly Sourced Seafood logo.
For more information, please contact
responsiblesourcing@coles.com.au
MSC certified tuna
Tuna is among the world’s most popular fish and therefore among the most commercially valuable1. With the high demand for tuna, there are stocks that are exploited to full capacity or overfished2. Seafood with the MSC blue fish tick provides assurance that fish and seafood products are kept separate from non-MSC certified products throughout the supply chain and that procedures are in place so they can be traced back to MSC certified sustainable fisheries.
For a fishery to be MSC certified means that the following requirements are met:
- Healthy populations of fish stocks: Fisheries operate in a way that prevents overfishing and depletion of targeted populations.
- Impacts on ecosystems minimised: Fisheries minimise impact on non-target species and the natural environment.
- Responsible and effective management: Fisheries demonstrate that they are well managed so that stocks can be fished long-term.
Industry engagement
We acknowledge the potential impacts seafood production can have on the environment, and work collaboratively with our suppliers, NGOs, certification bodies and subject matter experts to look for opportunities to further improve our Coles Responsibly Sourced Seafood Program based on latest science and information.
Human Rights
We acknowledge that protecting human rights in supply chains is a global issue and we understand the important role we have in safeguarding human rights within our complex supply chains. Detailed information regarding our Ethical Sourcing Program is available
here.
1
https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/66538eba-9c85-4504-8438-c1cf0a0a3903/content/sofia/2024/capture-fisheries-production.html
<accessed 29 January 2025>
2
https://www.iss-foundation.org/about-issf/what-we-publish/issf-documents/issf-2024-07-status-of-the-world-fisheries-for-tuna-november-2024/
<accessed 29 January 2025>
