This could mean tweaking its current business model while streamlining its chain of custody process, Nicolas Guichoux, who heads the MSC’s Europe activities, told IntraFish.
A key focus will be on making the MSC’s Chain of Custody (CoC) process better adapted to the foodservice segment, including at wet fish counters in retailers.
“A big part of our commitment, the big work in progress at the moment, is to make our chain of custody program more adapted to restaurants and fishmongers. Most of the companies at the moment that have gone through chain of custody are in the middle of the supply chain, like wholesalers or processors,” Guichoux said.
Unlike foodservice players, retailers typically only need CoC certification for a limited range of products, since most of the products they buy are pre-packed and sold as such to consumers, Guichoux said.
“That’s what has probably slowed down our progress in the foodservice segment. Despite these differences, we have witnessed a strong uptake over the past 12 months with companies like McDonald's and Sodexo but also with schools, universities and even Michelin starred restaurants - demonstrating the increasing interest from this important sector.”
At the moment, companies who want to use the MSC logo as a consumer-facing label on a product pay a fixed fee of $250 (€192.9) to $2,000 (€1,543) a year, in addition to 0.5 percent of their net wholesale sales value to the MSC.
To encourage more companies to use the logo, the MSC is consulting at the moment with some of its commercial partners to tweak its existing logo charging structure linking it to sales discount or marketing incentives, Guichoux said.
The organization is also looking at a “much more radical changereduce its dependence on logo licensing income, he said.
However, he said: “We haven’t started the process yet.”
Expanding to China, Japan
Nearly 15,000 products worldwide are currently MSC certified, representing sales of more than $3 billion (€2.3 billion).
To increase this number, the organization will also expand its reach to markets such as China, Japan, and South Africa, the MSC said.
“The primary market objective over the next five years is to double the overall market share for MSC-certified seafood,” the organization said in an outline of its five-year plan.
“That will equate to market share of around 30-40 percent throughout advanced markets in northern Europe, a quadrupling of current market share in the US and Canada, a growing MSC market presence in Australia/New Zealand, Japan and southern Europe, and introducing the MSC concept in China and select markets in Asia.”
Already, the organization has recruited its first Asia director as parts of plans to expand in China.
In southern Europe and Japan, it said, the aim is to have “at least a dozen major corporate commitments to the MSC” by 2017.
Registered as a non-profit charity in the UK, the MSC has two main sources of income: the logo licensing scheme on the one hand, and grants and donations on the other. The former generated £6.3 million (€7.9 million/$10.2 million) in the 12 months ending at the end of March 2011, a 54 percent increase from the previous year. Income from the latter was up by 15percent the same year, to £6.45 million (€8 million/$10.4 million).
(vasep.com.vn) As part of the Vietnam Fisheries International Exhibition (Vietfish 2026), the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), in collaboration with the Agency for Domestic Market Management and Development under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, will organize the Domestic Seafood Supply–Demand Matching Program on the morning of August 20, 2026, at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC), Ho Chi Minh City. The program aims to foster direct business connections between Vietnamese seafood producers and processors and domestic distributors, retailers, and foodservice channels.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The Cooking Show will be one of the most engaging experiential highlights of Vietfish 2026. Taking place over three days, from August 19–21, 2026, at Hall B1, SECC, Ho Chi Minh City, the event will offer visitors a vibrant culinary space where Vietnamese seafood is showcased through its flavors, stories, and real-life culinary applications.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam's pangasius exports reached USD 205 million in June 2026, up 5% compared with the same month in 2025. Cumulative export value for the first six months of the year totaled USD 1.1 billion, an increase of 12% year-on-year. Growth was primarily driven by strong demand from China and CPTPP markets, while exports to the United States and Brazil continued to decline.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) In the first six months of 2026, Ha Tinh province continued to implement comprehensive solutions to combat IUU fishing; strictly manage the fishing fleet, control fishing vessels entering and leaving ports, operate vessel tracking devices, trace the origin of seafood, and severely punish violations.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam's tilapia exports reached USD 7 million in June 2026, down 32% compared with the same month in 2025. Nevertheless, thanks to strong growth in the first five months of the year, cumulative tilapia exports in the first half of 2026 totaled USD 69 million, up 67% year on year.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Sa Giang Import-Export Joint Stock Company, a member of the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), has been honored with the "Famous Brand - Competitive Vietnamese Brand 2026" certification at an award ceremony organized by the Vietnam Intellectual Property Association (VIPA).
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) China imported nearly $1.4 billion worth of Vietnamese seafood in the first half of the year, a 40% increase compared to the same period last year, surpassing the US to become the largest export market for the industry.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) As part of Vietfish 2026, the International Seafood Hosted Buyer Program has been designed as a dedicated B2B matchmaking initiative for selected international buyers. The program provides opportunities to meet directly with Vietnamese seafood companies, gain market insights, and experience Vietnam's seafood supply chain firsthand.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) A Story from Cà Mau’s Coast It’s 5 AM in Cà Mau. Minh, a third-generation fisherman, is ready to set sail. But unlike his father and grandfather, his boat no longer runs on an old diesel engine that burns fuel and clouds the sky with smoke. Instead, it’s powered by a hybrid engine that saves 40% fuel—funded by an ESG program from a major seafood exporter.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam's pangasius industry is shifting its focus from increasing production volume to enhancing value-added products in order to meet the increasingly stringent requirements of export markets. In An Giang Province—the country's leading hub for pangasius farming and processing—businesses and farmers are prioritizing product quality, traceability, food safety, and sustainable development rather than expanding output.
VASEP - HIỆP HỘI CHẾ BIẾN VÀ XUẤT KHẨU THỦY SẢN VIỆT NAM
Chịu trách nhiệm: Ông Nguyễn Hoài Nam - Phó Tổng thư ký Hiệp hội
Đơn vị vận hành trang tin điện tử: Trung tâm VASEP.PRO
Trưởng Ban Biên tập: Bà Phùng Thị Kim Thu
Giấy phép hoạt động Trang thông tin điện tử tổng hợp số 138/GP-TTĐT, ngày 01/10/2013 của Bộ Thông tin và Truyền thông
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 – (ext.203); email: kimthu@vasep.com.vn
Trụ sở: Số 7 đường Nguyễn Quý Cảnh, Phường An Phú, Quận 2, Tp.Hồ Chí Minh
Tel: (+84) 28.628.10430 - Fax: (+84) 28.628.10437 - Email: vasephcm@vasep.com.vn
VPĐD: số 10, Nguyễn Công Hoan, Ngọc Khánh, Ba Đình, Hà Nội
Tel: (+84 24) 3.7715055 - Fax: (+84 24) 37715084 - Email: vasephn@vasep.com.vn