Gottfried Friedrichs and WWF:Joining forces to safeguard the future of wild salmon from Kamchatka

No, it’s not a thing of the past! The untouched wilderness with its incredible diversity of flora and fauna can still be found. One example is the Kamchatka Peninsular in the far east of Russia. This region has the same area as Germany but, with only 400,000 inhabitants, is sparsely populated. Large parts of this unique natural landscape have been declared a world natural heritage by UNESCO. This is also the home of the Kamchatka wild salmon. The particular riches of this region are reflected in one of the world’s largest reserves of Pacific wild salmon; in fact, every fourth Pacific wild salmon comes from Kamchatka. This is an abundance which must be protected as more than half of the stocks of Kamchatka wild salmon are still being fished illegally.

Sustainable fishing forms a crucial part of Gottfried Friedrichs’ corporate philosophy. Working together with WWF Germany, we therefore initiated a project to establish sustainable fishing in the Kamchatka Bering Sea natural reserve as part of the celebrations marking our Company’s 100th anniversary in 2008. The purpose of this internationally unique pioneering project is to preserve the marine ecological system, to protect the stocks of Pacific wild salmon and to establish and build up sustainable fishing.

Demand for ecologically sound fish is rising all the time. As one of the leading European distributors of fine fish, we view our commitment to sustainable fishing as an undertaking which we owe to the environment and consumers. As a fair buyer and processor of Kamchatka wild salmon, we want to offer fishers in this region specific incentives to engage in sustainable fishing in the interests of safeguarding their livelihoods in the long term.
 

The prime long-term goal which we are pursuing with the WWF in Kamchatka is to establish fishing operations which comply with the strict generally acknowledged guidelines issued by the independent international organisation Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). As a quality leader in fine fish delicacies, FRIEDRICHS has been offering the first Kamchatka wild salmon in Germany since 2008.

Downloads on the WWF Kamchatka project

 
Information leaflet on the WWF Kamchatka projekt WWF fact sheet on Kamchatka wild salmon