After a thorough process, including independent peer review, public consultation, and an investigation of a formal objection by the MSC's independent oversight body, Aker QRILL Company's Antarctic krill fishery has again been certified as meeting the Marine Stewardship Council's Fisheries Standard.
The fishery has held MSC certification continuously since 2010, and the new certificate reflects its latest five-yearly reassessment. The fishery achieved strong scores across all three MSC principles under the MSC Fisheries Standard.
For customers and brands relying on Antarctic krill ingredients, independent certification provides important assurance that the fishery is assessed against internationally recognized sustainability requirements. It also supports transparency and confidence throughout the global krill supply chain.
"Keeping this certification is something we have to earn every five years, and it requires us to ensure the fishery evolves going forward. The process has been especially thorough, but scrutiny is always what makes us better," says Pål Skogrand, Chief Policy Officer of Aker QRILL Company.
LRQA, an accredited independent conformity assessment body, began reassessing the fishery in spring 2025. It evaluated krill-stock health, ecosystem impacts and management. Independent scientific reviewers assessed the draft findings, which LRQA then opened for public comment. LRQA recommended certification in February 2026.
The assessment noted safeguards: CCAMLR limits catches to about 1% of estimated krill biomass in the area, and scientific observers accompany every trip. It also cited voluntary research and monitoring, low-bycatch technology, and seasonal no-fishing zones near penguin colonies. Further improvements are needed, including more spatially refined fisheries management and stronger ecosystem safeguards. AQC remains committed to research, stakeholder dialogue, and advancing management through CCAMLR.
The fishery achieved strong scores across all three MSC principles, comfortably exceeding the threshold of 80 that each principle must reach for certification:
| MSC principle | Score |
|---|---|
| Principle 1: Target stock sustainability | 86.7 |
| Principle 2: Environmental and ecosystem impacts | 88.7 |
| Principle 3: Fisheries management system | 93.5 |
The particularly strong management score reflects the established CCAMLR framework, compliance and monitoring arrangements, and stakeholder engagement.
"The Qrill fishery's recertification demonstrates that sustainable fishing is possible in the sensitive Antarctic environment, provided it is underpinned by independent oversight, precaution and accountability."
Marine Stewardship Council, announcement of 6 November 2026
Two NGOs filed formal objections. Under MSC procedures, an Independent Adjudicator reviewed them before Assurance Services International (ASI), which oversees MSC assessors, investigated. ASI's final report, published 6 November 2026, concluded the fishery could proceed to certification. Though lengthy and demanding, this scrutiny - including challenges from outside the industry - supports the MSC label's credibility.
This certification introduces two conditions to address local-scale management, prevent concentrated harvesting, and ensure decisions account for that risk. Conditions are routine in the MSC program, intended "to incentivize further improvements in fishery performance". Most certified fisheries have conditions, and a peer-reviewed study found more than nine in ten were certified with them.
For several years, AQC has argued for finer-scale, science-based management of the krill fishery, including support for a new krill fishery management approach and a Marine Protected Area in the Antarctic Peninsula region, and will continue to do so.
"We want to thank everyone involved in this thorough process, also the organizations who have devoted time and effort through the formal MSC stakeholder process," Pål Skogrand concludes.
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is an international non-profit organization that runs the world's leading certification and ecolabelling program for sustainable seafood. The MSC Fisheries Standard is a science-based set of requirements for sustainable fishing, developed with scientists, the fishing industry and conservation organizations and revised regularly to reflect the latest science and best practice. To be certified, a fishery must show that it fishes at sustainable levels, minimizes its environmental impact and is well managed, and it must pass an independent audit every year. – www.msc.org
Aker QRILL Company is a global frontrunner in sustainable krill-based ingredients, delivering high-performance nutrition to the aquaculture and pet food industries. With full control of the value chain, from sustainable harvesting in Antarctica to advanced R&D, processing, and global sales, we drive innovation and impact. The company develops krill-based ingredients for aquaculture (QRILL™ Aqua), animal feed applications (QRILL™ Pet), and nutraceutical human health products. Our headquarters are in Oslo, Norway, with regional offices across key markets including Bergen, Ålesund, France, India, Thailand, China, Indonesia, and Chile. – www.qrill.com
Tormod Sandstø
Communications Director, Aker QRILL Company
tormod.sandsto@qrill.com
t: +47 90943215