Caterers Choice becomes the first UK foodservice supplier Member of the International Pole & Line Foundation

[12th August 2016 / London/UK]

Caterers Choice has become the first company focusing on the UK foodservice sector to be named a Member of IPNLF, the non-profit association that is committed to developing fisheries supplying products utilising responsibly sourced tuna that has been caught using one-by-one catching methods.

Incorporated in 1988, family-owned Caterers Choice is one of the United Kingdom’s leading importers and distributors of canned and ambient products to the UK foodservice and manufacturing markets. Working with many of the most trusted high street brands, the company is a key advocate for the Indonesian pole-and-line industry and for the sustainable sourcing of tuna.

Caterers Choice has become the 36th Member of IPNLF. With tuna being a key commodity within the company’s portfolio from the outset, it actively encourages best practice with regards to environmental issues and only work with canneries that are proactive in reducing their impact on the world’s ecosystems.

“Our membership of the International Pole & Line Foundation not only validates Caterers Choice’s long-term commitment to helping deliver management measures that can effectively safeguard the future of global tuna stocks and those communities that are reliant upon them, it also helps provide some important environmental and social assurances that our customers and end consumers can buy into,” says Steve Farmiloe, Senior Trading Manager at Caterers Choice.

Farmiloe continues, “Through our membership of IPNLF, we look forward to further supporting IPNLF and its advocacy work in one-by-one fisheries, as well as encouraging the broader UK foodservice industry to increase its level of engagement with these fisheries and the efforts to ensure their long-term viability.”

Commenting on Caterers Choice’s membership, Emily Howgate, International Coordinating Director at IPNLF, says, “This commitment from Caterers Choice, aligned with its responsible sourcing policies, clearly demonstrates that momentum is building within the foodservice sector and professional kitchens to support the sustainable and equitable development of tuna fisheries all around the world. A key part of our new three-year strategic focus is to encourage the engagement of the foodservice and catering sectors, and to involve members – new and old – in projects that support the communities and fisheries that we care about; giving them life-changing opportunities to supply the fast-growing consumer demand for one-by-one tuna products.”

IPNLF helps ensure the demand for one-by-one caught tuna can be met without compromising the sustainability of the fisheries, while at the same time providing much-needed support for fishing communities who are heavily reliant upon those stocks. 

[ENDS]

Article first published on the IPNLF website