THE NEW STANDARD OF SUSTAINABLE AQUACULTURE

A+ is a world class sustainable management framework aimed at enabling the New Zealand aquaculture industry to engage with its communities to improve environmental practices and strengthen global demand for New Zealand seafood.

For decades New Zealand Marine Farmers have been on their 'A' Game. Now they’re stepping that up to an A+.

New Zealand Greenshell mussels, King salmon, and Pacific oysters are already independently recognised among the world's most sustainable seafoods.

The A+ Programme takes the industry a step further, setting world leading sustainable aquaculture standards and publicly reporting on the industry's performance against those standards.

This is our backyard, it's our job to help protect it!

We are proud of the sustainability of our industry and the efforts our farmers make every day to be the best they can be.

So What is A+ ?

A+ is a voluntary sustainability improvement programme designed to pathway industry toward best practice. External environmental certifications are prohibitively expensive to gain and maintain, creating a huge barrier for our farmers to get the support and guidance they need for improving practices.
At AQNZ we believe that there should be not price on improvement. The A+ programme has made sustainable best practice attainable for all industry members. All it costs for our farmers is some time each year to complete reporting, and a commitment to continually improve.
Whilst A+ is not a typical environmental certification, it still sets the same international standard for best practice, and is designed to align with other standards from around the world.

The A+ programme was built on the Sustainable Management Frameworks developed by AQNZ

Download Frameworks

These frameworks highlight the objectives and standards of the A+ programme. These frameworks are based on global best practice.

Download the Sustainable Management Framework for each species by clicking on the images below:

How it Works

The framework formalises a cycle of continuous reporting, review and improvement and provides a great platform for the community and industry to engage on their sustainability aspirations.

Farmers will use the reporting tool at www.aplus.org.nz and the collective industry's performance against a range of criteria will be published annually.

Compliance

Ecology