Cold Storage stops selling shark's fin products
In a bid to promote consumption of sustainable seafood, Cold Storage has become the first supermarket chain in Singapore to stop selling shark's fin.
They initiated their "no shark's fin" policy last Saturday, with all 42 of their stores island-wide ceasing to provide shark's fin products.
This is after Cold Storage joined the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Singapore Sustainable Seafood Group.
The group, recently launched in April this year, aims to provide businesses with a guide on how to source and promote sustainable seafood while also playing a role in protecting the marine environment.
A spokesperson from Cold Storage told Yahoo! Singapore that the supermarket chain used to sell frozen shark's fin and canned products containing shark's fin.
When asked about how much of these sharks fin products they used to sell in a month, the spokesperson declined to comment.
In addition to the barring of shark's fin, It is also the nation’s first retail food chain to source and offer a wide range of sustainable seafood recommended by WWF.
The supermarket now offers red snapper from New Zealand and Australian mussels and prawns, to Atlantic mackerel from Norway and hake fillet from South Africa.
Their sustainable seafood range is 10 per cent more expensive than the normal seafood range.
"By not selling shark’s fins and offering a wide range of sustainable seafood choices, Cold Storage makes it easier for consumers in Singapore to play a bigger role in safeguarding the future of our fish stocks and endangered marine species", said Amy Ho, Managing Director, WWF Singapore.
Meanwhile, the supermarket has also begun its efforts to go green by launching a 16,800 square feet eco store at Jelita.
With environmental-friendly features like energy-saving lighting, freezers, chillers, and refrigerating equipment, the overall lighting energy savings amount to 71 percent annually.
While Jelita remains a pilot project, a Cold Storage spokesperson told Yahoo! Singapore that they will look into the possibility of going green for the rest of their stores as well.
