ABSTRACT
The rapid expansion of commercial fishing had changed livelihoods and local cultures, forcing fishing communities with hundred years of tradition into turmoil. Fishing operations should allow for the maintenance of the structure, productivity, function and diversity of the ecosystem on which the fishery depends. The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) worked very hard with very limited resources to achieve fisheries and commercial outreach. Transforming the global fishing industry into a more sustainable one was a formidable task for a small, unknown organization like the MSC. Governments, industries, and Non-goverment Organization all doubted its potential to be truly effective. One of the biggest concerns was to overcome the "chicken and egg" problem: no supply meant no market, and no market meant no supply. While supporting the idea initially, it later criticized some aspects of the MSC's approach: weak criteria, a governance structure dominated by industry and a lack of stakeholder engagement.
