The Stornoway Western Isles Langoustine Fishery has become the first trawl-caught langoustine fishery in the world to achieve Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification as a sustainable and well-managed fishery. The certification, received on 14th April 2009, was financially sponsored by Young's Seafood.

According to Yvonne Adam, marketing director of Young's, the company has worked tirelessly with the Stornoway fleet to help them through the process, in order to properly compete in today's market. "I am delighted that the fruits of our joint labour have been rewarded. Langoustine is already the UK's most valuable fishery catch and it is important for key fisheries like Stornoway to demonstrate their sustainability," she said.

Young's invented scampi over 60 years ago and purchases around £2.5m of langoustine from The Stornoway Western Isles Langoustine Fishery per annum. An investment of more than £1m in the fishery to date includes the development of pioneering traceability technology which contributed significantly to the achievement of MSC status.

Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment, Richard Lochhead MSP visited the Western Isles and congratulated Young's and the local skippers on their joint achievement. "I am delighted that the Stornoway Western Isles Langoustine Fishery has achieved this gold standard of sustainability. I want to congratulate warmly everyone involved in securing this fantastic achievement," he said.

Iain Murray, skipper of Comrade, who together with Murdo Macdonald of the Sharon Rose, has played a key role in the MSC certification process, commented: "Coming from a family that has been involved in prawn fishing here since the early '60s, I have a keen interest in creating an environment for low impact, sustainable fishing. Achieving MSC certification has therefore been close to my heart and I'm delighted that the efforts of both the fishermen and Young's have been rewarded."

Rupert Howes, Chief Executive of the MSC, added: "Young's and the Stornoway fleet have shown how companies in the supply chain can work in partnership with fisheries to achieve MSC certification and I hope this will encourage others to join together. I offer my congratulations to them both for this successful approach and excellent outcome."

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