TraceASC: Digital Traceability for ASC Certified Farmed Seafood

TraceASC is our pioneering digital traceability project that improves transparency in ASC certified supply chains and enhances confidence in the farmed seafood industry.

Farmed seafood supply chains are often long and complex. Greater levels of transparency, digital traceability and verifiable information play a key role in meeting industry demands and expectations.

This protects the integrity of responsible organizations across the industry and empowers consumers to make informed choices about the seafood they buy.

How it works

TraceASC uses software to capture and convey Key Data Elements (KDEs) from ASC certified farms, throughout the supply chain, to retailers.

As an ASC certified product moves along the supply chain, the KDEs are transferred digitally using a unique code. This enhances traceability and transparency for everyone sourcing, selling and buying ASC certified seafood.

MyASC is the online platform used by ASC to manage its farm and feed mill certification administration. All ASC related data submissions, including KDEs for TraceASC, are done on this platform.

ASC has confidential access to all data collected to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of product integrity investigations and other program assurance activities, including monitoring and evaluation.

What it means for ASC certified supply chains

The initial focus of TraceASC was on shrimp supply chains with products originating from Southeast Asia. ASC certified shrimp farms and processing facilities in Vietnam, India and Bangladesh are already participating. In 2025 we are extending this scope to include shrimp originating from Ecuador.

This successful roll-out for shrimp supply chains has tested and proved the tool’s capability and we are now expanding to other species and geographies.

Collaborating for Progress

ASC has worked closely with other organisations and large-scale traceability initiatives, including the Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (GDST) which ASC has been endorsing since 2022, to develop and progress this project as we have shared objectives.

One of these is interoperability, which we aim to achieve initially by providing a standardised ASC API.  We will build on this at a later stage by using the GS1 standards for data exchange between different software providers and MyASC.

In TraceASC, GDST compliant Key Data Elements are tracked.

Using TraceASC means you have data available in a digital format that you can easily incorporate into your internal processes and reporting

TraceASC is part of a suite of new tools, using the latest technology and adapting successful methods from other sectors, that ASC is championing to offer the most robust traceability and in the certified seafood sector.

Please feel free to contact the TraceASC team for more information and updates at trace@asc-aqua.org

Page updated January 2025.