More and more consumers are changing their eating habits for environmental reasons.

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) presented new results from a consumer study showing that more and more people are changing their diets to protect the environment, due to growing concern about climate change.

The study, conducted by the independent consultancy GlobeScan in 23 countries, involved more than 25 consumers and revealed that almost half (44%) of the people who said they had changed their diet in the last two years did so for different environmental reasons, including eating food from more sustainable sources (23%), reducing the impact of climate change (20%) and protecting the oceans (12%).

Portugal

Specifically regarding Portugal, the study showed that consumers (97%) are concerned about the oceans and divided as to whether the future will be positive or negative, but feel increasingly empowered (73%) to make changes through their choices of seafood products.

Behind ocean pollution, overfishing is the second issue that causes the most concern among national seafood consumers, who believe (82%) that the sustainability principles adopted by major consumer brands should be certified by independent organizations.

2nd Week Sea Forever

These and other data were released on the sidelines of the event organized by MSC that marked the start of the II Mar Para Sempre Week, which takes place between November 14 and 20, and which focused on the analysis of the Panorama of Certified Sustainable Fish in Portugal. This event also included the participation of chef Ricardo Luz, one of MSC's blue ambassadors. Also to mark the beginning of this commemorative week, the urban artist Ôje is developing a mural located on Calçada da Glória, alluding to the theme of ocean preservation.

The "Sea Forever Week" was created with the aim of raising awareness among consumers, the fishing industry and public entities about the importance of adopting sustainable fishing practices, and has the institutional support of entities such as the Association of the Food Industry for Cold Storage (ALIF), the National Association of Fish Canning Industries (ANICP), BlueBio Alliance, the Centre for Marine and Environmental Sciences (MARE), DECO PROTESTE, the Interdisciplinary Centre for Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR) and the UN Global Compact Network Portugal.

For the development of this campaign, MSC also counts on the support and participation of the partners with whom it works in Portugal, namely Aldi, Lidl, Continente, Brasmar, Cofaco, Cofisa, A Poveira, Gelpeixe, Grupeixe, Iglo, Lugrade, Ramirez, Riberalves, Rui Costa e Sousa & Irmão and Soguima.

Under the slogan #TogetherInTheSameBoat, MSC will develop an awareness campaign, which will be present on social media, in the press, and in the retail outlets of its partners in Portugal. The aim is to raise awareness of the blue label that certifies products from sustainable fishing, so that it is widely recognized by consumers.

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