Marine Eco-Label Japan (MEL Japan) was launched in December 2007 as a system to support fisheries that are friendly both to marine resources and the oceans.
This system is designed to certify fisheries that are conduted in a sustainable and responsible manner. Specifically, it is intended to encourage and promote such fisheries by providing eco-labels for their products.
MEL Japan certification is classified into two stages:
(1) certification in the production stage (fishery certification)
(2) certification in the distribution and processing stage (chain of custody certification). The former is aimed at certifying that a fishery is giving due consideration to the resoures and the ecosystem, while that latter is designed to ensure that the seafoods certified in the production stage are distributed and processed without being mixed with uncertified seafoods.