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What is ASC Feed Mill Certification?
Businesses that prioritize sustainability and responsible sourcing prefer the ASC Feed Mill Certification to demonstrate their commitment to environmental stewardship and social responsibility. This certification is crucial for companies seeking to access markets with best-practice sustainability standards and to meet the growing consumer demand for responsibly produced seafood. Additionally, it provides a competitive edge by enhancing brand reputation and ensuring compliance with international regulations and guidelines in responsible aquaculture.
The ASC Feed Certification process involves a comprehensive audit of a feed mill's operations, assessing compliance with ASC's stringent standards for environmental sustainability and social responsibility. This includes evaluating sustainable sourcing of ingredients, minimizing environmental impacts, and ensuring ethical labor practices, culminating in certification for those that meet or exceed these criteria.
Why Choose SCS?
Achieving ASC Feed Certification through SCS Global Services offers a unique advantage. As the first accredited certifier for this standard, SCS brings unmatched expertise and experience. Our deep involvement in developing and piloting the ASC Feed standard, combined with our comprehensive knowledge of major farmed species and feed mill production, ensures a thorough and robust audit process. Moreover, SCS's ability to bundle ASC Feed audits with seafood safety and social/labour audits offer a streamlined, efficient approach for businesses seeking to demonstrate their commitment to both sustainability, product safety, and social compliance. This comprehensive service provides your customers with independent assurance that your feed products meet the highest environmental and social criteria. We also offer Science Based Targets services leveraging our experience and knowledge from having effectively guided numerous clients through the SBT development process to establish an appropriate approach.
- Pre-Assessment (Optional)
- Certification Assessment
- Process
SCS Global Services offers a valuable pre-assessment service for producers looking for confirmation on their level of preparedness for a full ASC Feed audit.
A pre-assessment is an optional but crucial step for businesses to understand their alignment with the ASC standard. It involves a thorough gap analysis of current operations against the ASC Feed standard, followed by a detailed report highlighting areas that need improvement. This process not only prepares producers to be among the first to receive feed certification but also showcases their commitment to supplying ASC-certified products to their buyers.
The pre-assessment sets the stage for the formal full assessment required for certification. The cost of the full assessment is determined by several factors, including the scale of production, the number and nature of improvements identified during the pre-assessment, and the specifics of the auditing process. This structured approach ensures that producers are well-informed and prepared for the steps required to achieve and maintain ASC Feed certification.
The ASC Feed audit process is a systematic examination to evaluate a feed mill's compliance with the ASC Feed Standard. It typically takes 3 months and involves several key steps:
Pre-assessment (Optional): Before the formal audit, a pre-assessment may be conducted to identify gaps between the mill's current practices and the ASC Feed Standard requirements. This helps in pinpointing areas needing improvement.
Documentation Review: SCS submits a comprehensive records and document request. Auditors thoroughly review relevant documents and records, such as sourcing policies, environmental management plans, and labor practices, to ensure they align with the standards set by the ASC.
On-site Inspection: Auditors visit the feed mill to observe operations and verify practices against the standard. This includes checking the sourcing of raw materials, environmental management systems, and worker conditions.
Interviews and Stakeholder Engagement: Auditors conduct interviews with employees and, in some cases, external stakeholders like suppliers and local communities, to gather comprehensive insights into the mill’s practices.
Report Generation: After the audit, a detailed report is generated, outlining the findings and indicating whether the standard is met. This report will also highlight areas for improvement if the mill doesn't fully comply with the standard. A public draft of this report is posted for public comment.
Certification Decision: If the audit results are positive and all criteria are met, the feed mill is granted ASC Feed Certification. If there are non-conformities, the mill is required to address these issues within a specified timeframe to achieve certification.
Ongoing Surveillance: Once certified, the mill will undergo annual surveillance audits to ensure ongoing compliance with the ASC Feed Standard.
Pre-Assessment (Optional)
SCS evaluates the qualifications of your aquaculture operation and determines what risks, if any, may limit your ability to successfully complete a rigorous and comprehensive assessment.
On-Site Farm Audit
SCS conducts a full farm assessment, following procedures described in the ASC's Farm Assessment Methodology. An independent assessment team reviews documentation, interviews stakeholders and evaluates aquaculture operations against specific environmental and social practices.
Audit Report and Public Comment
The SCS certification team writes a draft report, which is reviewed by the client and two independent peer reviewers. Information that relates to competitive advantage may be removed from the audit report at this point, in agreement with the assessment team.The report is then posted for public comment.
Certification Decision
After considering all comments, a final report is released that includes the final decision on whether or not to award certification. If no objections have been raised, the public certification report is published and your aquaculture operation receives a certificate from SCS.
Maintain Certification
Certificates are valid for three years. Certification is subject to random surveillance audits in which critical control points such as harvest are observed.
Jason Swecker
SCS Certified Clients
Learn more about the clients we certify and where to find products with this certification.
