Beijing-based retailer Sofly commits to sourcing BAP-certified seafood

The Global Aquaculture Alliance signed a memorandum of understanding with Beijing Shouhang Guoli Trading Co. on 14 November, in which the company committed to sourcing seafood from Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP)-certified facilities for Sofly, a regional supermarket chain.

Sofly, which saw sales of nearly CNY 1.4 billion (USD 199 million, EUR 180 million) in 2017, has approximately 50 stores in Beijing, Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Jiangxi, and other nearby provinces. According to the retailer’s fresh food division director Li Junqiang, the agreement signed with BAP reinforces Sofly’s procurement standards.

“This agreement allows us to showcase that we are responsible for the company, responsible for our employees, and responsible for the comprehensive protection of the seafood products we’re selling,” Junqiang said. “Sofly started direct production in 2004. In the past 15 years, we have purchased from seafood suppliers selected by our own high procurement standards, such as Xingcheng Jiaying Weiye Trading Co. Ltd., Rushan Huaxin Food Co. Ltd. and Hainan Xiangtai Fisheries Co. Ltd. All of these companies are BAP-certified and adhere to the core values ​​of our customers and our business philosophy of sustainable management with gratitude, which means we want to be responsible for food safety and environmental protection."

The BAP program covers the entire aquaculture production chain – from processing plants and hatcheries to farms and feed mills. Additionally, the program is compliant with the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), the Global Social Compliance Programme (GSCP), and the Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI).

Sofly intends to gradually expand the percentage of BAP seafood that it sources to strengthen its commitment to sustainable seafood.

The agreement with Sofly caps off a successful year of market growth for BAP, noted GAA’s Jane Bi, who serves the organization as its director of business development for Asia.

“This MOU with Sofly further strengthens the cooperation between GAA and the retail market in northern China. Whether east, west, north or south, BAP seafood will be on Chinese people’s tables,” Bi said. “This year, GAA successfully inked strategic cooperation agreements with Hisealink, Jiuye Supply Chain, SpeedFresh and Hema, adopting BAP certification in their procurement strategies. Prior to 2019, JD.com, Yonghui Supermarket and Yiguo Extremely Fresh Network also agree to work with GAA on sourcing BAP seafood,."

Through the end of October, there were 2,247 BAP-certified farms, processing plants, hatcheries, and feed mills in 36 countries. Additionally, the BAP program has more than 150 retail and foodservice endorsers committed to sourcing seafood from BAP-certified facilities.

Photo courtesy of the Global Aquaculture Alliance/Sofly