Mars, Incorporated committed to using sustainably sourced fish

Mars, Incorporated’s Petcare business has announced its commitment to using only sustainably sourced fish by 2020.

Set against a backdrop of dwindling global fish stocks, Mars, which operates one of the world’s largest petcare businesses – has worked with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to develop its fish sustainability commitment. The company aims to achieve the following milestones, across its entire petcare portfolio:

• * Only using fish from 100% sustainable wild catch and sustainable aquaculture sources
  * Replacing all wild catch whole fish and fish fillet with sustainable fish by-products and sustainable aquaculture.
  * Only using sustainable alternatives to marine fish ingredients.

An important milestone in this sustainability journey will be the introduction of Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified petfood in Europe by the end of 2010. This year Mars Petcare Europe will begin rolling out MSC certification across a selection of fish varieties in the SHEBA® and WHISKAS® brand portfolios across Europe, offering consumers a choice of more sustainable pet food products for the first time.