SPAIN – Spain-based Dibaq Group, one of the principal national and international manufacturers of pet food and aquaculture, has been awarded Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification for one of its feed mills, becoming the first company in continental Europe to win certification for a feed mill.

The Global Seafood Alliance, which operates the BAP program, said the certification is evidence it is making inroads in continental Europe. BAP is the only seafood-specific certification program that is capable of certifying every step in the production chain. The process starts with hatcheries and ends in a processing plant where it is prepared for delivery to consumers.

“Through the development of its Best Aquaculture Practices and Best Seafood Practices certification standards, GSA has become the leading standards-setting organization for seafood,” it said.

Dibaq, which is family-owned, has been involved in the aquaculture and fish nutrition business since 1986. It now has a manufacturing capacity of 120,000 metric tons per year and sells to companies operating in 40 countries across four continents.

The newly-certified BAP facility is located in Fuentepelayo, Spain and manufactures aquaculture feed for salmon, sturgeon, trout, bream bass, barramundi, sole, turbot, seriola, eel, olive flounder, tilapia, catfish, and shrimp, in addition to dog and cat food.

“We are immensely happy to obtain BAP certification. At Dibaq, we respond to the demands of our clients throughout the world and strengthen our firm commitment to high specialization in fish nutrition and geographic diversification, delivering products of the highest quality and performance and being sustainable with the planet Earth,” Dibaq Managing Director José Luis Tejedor said in a press release.

Currently, there are almost 150 BAP-certified feed mills in 25 countries worldwide. Liyang Qianmatang Chenqiang Special Aquaculture Co. Ltd, a Chinese firm developed and promoted globally by the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), secured the first Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification for a yellow catfish farm in early February.

Barramundi Group, a leader in pioneering the future of barramundi through end-to-end sustainable aquaculture, was the first company to secure a four-star Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) rating in Australia in 2016 and Singapore in 2018.

Best Aquaculture Practices

Best Aquaculture Practices is a third-party certification program developed by the Global Seafood Alliance (GSA), an international, nonprofit trade association headquartered in Portsmouth, N.H., USA, dedicated to advancing environmentally and socially responsible seafood practices through education, advocacy and third-party assurances.

Through the development of its Best Aquaculture Practices and Best Seafood Practices certification standards, GSA has become the leading standards-setting organization for seafood.

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