Tiger prawn

Criteria on responsible feed are lacking in the ASC Shrimp Standard and Interim Feed Solution with currently no requirements for responsible ingredient sourcing, however, the new ASC Feed Mill Standard will soon become effective.There are different methods of farming prawns. In intensive and semi-intensive systems, additional feed inputs are used. In these instances Warmwater prawns (shrimp) are a fed species that require a diet comprising of fishmeal, fish oil and vegetable proteins and oils. At present improvements are required for the responsible sourcing of all of these ingredients, however with the uptake of the ASC Feed Mill standard in 2025, this will be progressed.The ASC Shrimp Standard ensures that the protein and oil component of the feed used is known and traceable to species level. There are also no requirements for soy products and palm oil to be sourced responsibly.Prawns are a net consumer of fish protein, meaning they eat more fish that they produce.

The ASC Shrimp Standard mitigates many areas of environmental concern in prawn farming, but there are still improvements that could be made.The ASC Shrimp Standard has criteria in place for production practices that address many environmental impacts. This includes ensuring that depletion or degradation of freshwater supplies is mitigated, discharge of effluents is limited, and any habitat alteration that has taken place, such as the destruction of mangroves, is historical, with verifiable restoration taking place since. Juveniles used are also hatchery based, with the exception of extensive systems where they may be incidental introduction.Prawn farms rely on chemical usage and antibiotics are widely used. Within the ASC Shrimp Standard, there is strict regulation on the use of chemicals to mitigate their impact on the surrounding environment.There are other potential environmental issues with prawn farming that the ASC Shrimp Standard addresses that are on a lower scale of ecological concern in prawn farming. This includes disease outbreak and parasite interactions, which may occur but are thought to be at a farm level and do not threaten regional level operations. It also includes the risk of escapes, which have not been found to have established in the wild.However, problems do still exist with prawn farming. Although ASC addresses many areas of concern, there are still improvements we would like to see made. This includes the use of lethal control of predators, which is still allowed to take place.

The ASC Shrimp Standard does not have sufficient criteria in place to ensure animal welfare and humane slaughter.Although the ASC Shrimp Standard addresses prawn welfare concerns indirectly, welfare is not specifically addressed and requirements for humane slaughter are not mentioned.

ASC farmed prawns are well managed and management is thought to be fully effective.This assessment covers all prawns farmed by the ASC Shrimp Standard globally. Although the standard does cover some aspects of strategic environmental planning, auditors must necessarily defer to an array of national and regional regulations, depending on the varying locations of certification-seeking producers.The ASC certification criteria covers Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), the identification and protection of valuable habitats and species, use of land and water resources, use of chemicals, discharges, biosecurity, disease management and species introduction. These criteria are thought to be fully effective in minimizing environmental impacts.The ASC standards cover the main environmental and social impacts of aquaculture, including fish health, feed and fair employment conditions, by setting metric based indicators. Farms are assessed annually by external auditors and results published. ASC products are traceable throughout the supply chain. ASC is the only ISEAL compliant aquaculture certification scheme.