Kalle Id reporting from onboard the Silja Serenade

Tallink Silja Oy, the Finnish subsidiary of Tallink Grupp, the Estonian cruise ferry operator, revealed today that it has become the first shipping company in the world with a Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Chain of Custody certificate. Five ships in the Silja Line and Tallink fleets are certified: the Silja Serenade, Silja Symphony, Galaxy and Baltic Princess sailing between Finland and Sweden under the Silja Line brand, and the Silja Europa sailing between Finland and Estonia for the Tallink brand.

The cerfiticate proves that all shrimp and herring served onboard is from sustainable stock, caught by responsible methods, and that it can be traced back to origin. According to Heikki Härmä, the Head Chef of the Silja Serenade and Emmi Kokko, the Product Manager of Restaurant Services, the company has a long tradition of sourcing as much as possible of its fish from MSC certified or other sustainable sources (including removing items that cannot be acquired from sustainable sources from the menu), but now the availability of certified shrimp and herring – two of the most popular ingredients in cuisine onboard – has made it possible to guarantee that all shrimp and herring served onboard are certified, and the onboard staff is properly trained to ensure that the Chain of Custody is unbroken and traceable. Marika Nöjd, Tallink Silja's Communications Director, further noted that the company's passengers have requested MSC-certified fish and now Tallink Silja is able to demonstrate that it answers this demand.