Princes Achieves 2025 Goal: 100% MSC-Certified Branded Tuna, 70 Million Cans

Princes Group says its branded canned tuna is now fully sourced from Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)-certified fisheries, representing around 70 million cans of tuna each year and appearing on shelves and in foodservice outlets across the UK. The move fulfils a public 2025 commitment and immediately gives shoppers access to MSC blue‑ecolabelled Princes tuna across major retail and hospitality channels.

The company frames the achievement as the culmination of a 10-year journey of fishery improvements, with a more focused sourcing transformation beginning in 2022 aimed at traceability and collaboration with fishing partners. David McDiarmid, corporate relations director at Princes Group, said, “This commitment is the culmination of a 10-year journey of fishery improvements.” He added, “It was deliberately ambitious, and achieving it reflects the scale of change required across complex global supply chains. Reaching 100 percent MSC‑certified tuna demonstrates the progress we have made alongside our partners and reinforces our belief in the MSC Standard, and its global recognition is critical in driving progress in sustainable fishing.”

Princes says the new supply configuration draws on a global footprint - the company sources from over 40 countries and works with hundreds of suppliers - and that traceability methods and supplier improvement efforts were central to reaching full MSC certification for its branded tuna. Princes also supports fishery improvement projects (FIPs) that work toward MSC certification as part of that wider supplier engagement and chain-of-custody work.

Products are carrying the MSC blue ecolabel, which Princes says gives shoppers “clear, trusted assurance” that the tuna was sourced responsibly with consideration for fish stocks, marine ecosystems and fishing communities. George Clark, Programme Director, UK & Ireland at the Marine Stewardship Council, commented, “Achieving 100% MSC‑certified sustainable tuna on their products is a clear demonstration of Princes’ leadership and commitment to keeping our oceans teaming with life. This ambitious and proactive industry action plays a vital role in driving real, positive impact in store and in our seas.”

The announcement follows other recent sourcing decisions by Princes: in October 2025 the company shifted its mackerel sourcing region from the Northeast Atlantic to MSC‑certified fisheries in Chile after observing poor stock health figures and a lack of direct action from nations along the Northeast Atlantic coast. Princes states the same responsible sourcing principles apply across other seafood lines including salmon and kippers.

Industry indicators suggest consumer demand for certified seafood is rising; Princes’ announcement comes alongside data showing UK consumer spending on MSC‑labelled seafood increased by 14% in the most recent financial year. The company’s release and subsequent reposts on organizational LinkedIn pages - including Princes Group (64,011 followers), Aquaculture Focus (29,187 followers) and FISH FOCUS (7,532 followers) - pushed the milestone into trade and buyer conversations.

With 100% of its branded tuna now MSC‑certified and roughly 70 million cans entering UK retail and foodservice channels, Princes positions itself as a large-scale buyer signalling consistent demand for certified fisheries and continuing to back fishery improvement work and traceability across its global supplier base.