The Busan Dialogue

CEOs of SeaBOS member companies CP Foods, Cermaq Group, Maruha Nichiro, Skretting, Thai Union, Cargill Aqua Nutrition, Dongwon Industries (Vice President), Kyokuyo, Nissui, Dongwon Industries (CEO) at the APEC House in Busan, Korea.

The 2023 dialogue meeting was held at APEC House, Busan, South Korea and was a significant milestone for SeaBOS. Members discussed the extensive work following Santpoort, to develop mechanisms to deliver action and impact towards transformation, and agreed on the Busan Statement 2023.   Scientific and company inputs to develop a monitoring and reporting framework were completed, and a Horizon Scan outlining global developments in science, regulation, and policy was discussed.

Significant outcomes and highlights from the meeting included Agreement to:

• A keystone project in Thailand to develop protocols to test for antimicrobial resistant genes in aquaculture, with future potential phases to engage with additional countries and species.
• A keystone project in several West Coast Africa nations (Morocco, Mauritania, and Senegal) to drive collective implementation to advance traceability and transparency in fishery supply chains to help address the risks of IUU fishing and modern slavery.
• Launch of the SeaBOS Impact Report 2023 which was created from the monitoring and reporting framework, to publicly report on progress towards meeting our goals and commitments.
• Release a Statement to APEC members seeking their help to address IUU fishing in the Pacific, by supporting voluntary actions from the seafood sector.
• Review and update existing time bound goals by Task Forces in the coming year, and mechanisms for members by October 2024 to identify processes underway and timeframes for delivery, where they had yet to meet existing time bound goals.
• New membership category to include Associate membership for companies who may be smaller than Keystone Actors, but can meet SeaBOS criteria, including public reporting and a demonstrated willingness to meet SeaBOS commitments and time bound goals.
• Election to the new members selection committee of Dr Sujint (CP Foods), President Ikemi (Maruha Nichiro), and President Inoue (Kyokuyo), to join with Steven Rafferty (Cermaq) and the Managing Director.
• Review the structure and function of the Secretariat to ensure it remains best placed to deliver on SeaBOS requirements as the collaboration enters a new phase of Action and Impact.