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Writer's pictureEdward Moss

ComPETEtence Rewarded!

[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]MSC UK Foodservice Champion of the Year – Pete Fraser from Cornwall’s Harbour Lights and Fraser’s 

Pete Fraser, owner of award-winning Harbour Lights and Fraser’s Fish and Chips in Cornwall, has been named Foodservice Champion at MSC UK’s annual awards in a virtual live-streamed ceremony from the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth.

The award for MSC UK Foodservice Champion of the Year recognises an individual or foodservice business that has gone above and beyond serving MSC labelled products on their menus and demonstrated exceptional leadership in championing seafood sustainability. Both independent establishments, including fish and chip shops, and chain restaurants were eligible in this category.


Due to social distancing restrictions, this year’s MSC UK awards were held virtually on September 30 with a streamed ceremony from the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth. Guest speakers included Mitch Tonks, MSC ambassador and award-winning restaurateur, Peter Buckland, fisherman from the MSC Cornish sardine fishery, and Tommy Russell, from the Poole Harbour Clam & Cockle Fishery as well as Luke Pollard, the MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, and Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Pete Fraser, the owner of the two establishments, said: “I am totally thrilled and humbled to be named as MSC Foodservice Champion for 2020. At Harbour Lights in Falmouth and Fraser’s in Penzance, I am sure a major part of our business growth has been, from early on, taking environmentally friendly fish buying decisions.

“MSC is the gold standard for choosing sustainably sourced fish. Wherever you see their ecolabel, you can buy with total confidence. On a personal note, I am particularly excited that there are now over 100 fish and chips shops throughout the UK, that have joined us in obtaining MSC certification.”

Loren Hiller, Senior Commercial Officer, UK & Ireland, said:   “It’s our collective responsibility to make sure our oceans are teeming with life forever, but we couldn’t do it without inspiring individuals like Pete Fraser who go above and beyond just using the blue label on the. His commitment to sustainable sourcing, promoting MSC species, finding plastic packaging alternatives for fish boxes and educating the next generation exceeds expectations. Pete is a worthy winner of this award and should be proud for what he has achieved. We thank him for his continued support as a custodian of the oceans.”

Frasers were judged to be winners owing to how well they inform customers about the sustainable credentials of their menu, including the journey of fish from catch to plate. Responsible sourcing, including promoting MSC certified species is key to their business ethos. The team will always endeavour to have at least three MSC certified fish on the menu and Frasers fish and chips often host sustainability workshops with their neighbouring primary schools.

The winners’ striking award, depicting a sea full of schooling fish, was designed and manufactured using 3D printing by Cornish-based J Supplied 3D. It was made in collaboration with Fishy Filaments, who recycle fishing nets used by fishermen at the MSC certified hake fishery in Cornwall into engineering grade nylon filament. Fishy Filaments’ innovative harbour-side recycling technology was invented in Cornwall, just down the road from Pete’s shop, Frasers Fish and Chips. Using this 100% recycled material saves about 98% of the carbon emissions of using equivalent virgin material.

MSC UK Awards 2020 Full list of winners:

Foodservice Champion of the Year: Pete Fraser – Harbour Lights and Frasers

Menu of the Year: Lussmanns Sustainable Fish and Grill

Foodservice Wholesaler of the Year: Brakes and M&J

Fresh Fish Foodservice Supplier of the Year:  The Stickleback Fish Company

University of the Year: Durham University

Supermarket of the Year: Sainsbury’s

Mid-size Store Retailer of the Year: Lidl

Fish Counter of the Year: Waitrose & Partners

Newcomer of the Year: Iceland

Retail Supplier of the Year: New England Seafood International

Canned Brand of the Year: John West

Frozen Brand of the Year: Birds Eye

Marketing Champion of the Year: Lidl

Ocean Hero: Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM)

MSC Virtual Awards Ceremony NMA 290920


About the Marine Stewardship Council

The MSC is an international non-profit organisation which sets globally recognised, science-based standards for sustainable fishing and seafood traceability.

The blue MSC label on a seafood product means that: it comes from a wild-catch fishery which has been independently certified to the MSC’s science-based standard for environmentally sustainable fishing; it is fully traceable to a sustainable source. It can be found on more than 100 species of seafood in 100 countries. msc.org

About the MSC UK awards

The MSC UK Awards celebrate the outstanding achievements and performance in the area in sustainable fish and seafood across the entire UK business spectrum. In the light of the global pandemic and social distancing restrictions this year’s MSC Awards were pre-recorded and streamed as live from inside the National Marine Aquarium (NMA) on Wednesday 30th September.

14 MSC UK award winners were announced over the course of the one-hour streamed awards ceremony, which included speakers from across the fish and seafood industry as well as the premiere of MSC UK’s Project UK film and a wrap up of MSC UK’s consumer awareness campaign, What it Takes, and the first UK edition of Sustainable Seafood Week.

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