The Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries has
been used by many governments as a basis to intro-
duce policies and mechanisms in order to ensure
the sustainability and the biodiversity of their fish
stocks and aquatic environment. FAO has also
developed voluntary guidelines in order to help
member countries, such as the “FAO International
Guidelines for the Management of Deep-sea Fisheries
in the High Sea” (FAO, 2008), a unique international
instrument promoting responsible fisheries while
ensuring the conservation of marine living resources
and the protection of marine biodiversity.
The increased focus on sustainability by govern-
ments and environmental organizations such as the
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has increased
the awareness among consumers of how the limited
natural resources are utilized and how it may impact
the environment and biodiversity. As a result, the
private sector has introduced initiatives to meet the
demand from consumers, such as eco-labels, in-
suring responsible fishing practices and sustainable
use of the aquatic environments.
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has one of
the best known standards and certification pro-
grammes for the fisheries sector, but many other
eco-labellingschemes such as “Friends of the
Sea”, “KRAV” and “Naturland“ provide their serv-
ice to the fisheries and aquaculture sector (Blaha,
2011). On the request from member states, FAO has
produced guidelines in order to harmonize the in-
creasing number of certification schemes, such as
the “FAO Guidelines for the Eco-Labelling of Fish
and Fisheries Products from Marine Capture” (FAO,
2 005), and the “Guidelines for Aquaculture Certifi-
cation” (FAO, 2011b).
With regard to the international trade in aquatic ani-
mals, different obligatory international treaties/agree-
ments and other voluntary guidelines are involved.
Examples of binding international agreements include
the following: Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement
of the World Trade Organization, SPS Agreement
(WTO, 1994), the Convention on Biological Diversity(CBD, 1992), the Convention on International Trade
of Endangered Species and European Union related
legislation and directives. Examples of voluntary
agreements/guidelines include that of the Interna-
tional Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES,
2005), the codes of practice of the European Inland
Fisheries Advisory Commission (Turner, 1998) and a
number of FAO guidelines. In many instances, vol-
untary international guidelines are incorporated into
national legislations and thus become mandatory at
the national level.References
Balzer, T., Balzer P. and S. Pon 2005. Traditional use and availabil-
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