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Seafood labels and claims:MSC, Label Rouge, PGI, line-caught, small-scale fishing

MSC, Pêche durable, Label Rouge, PGI, PDO, organic, line, small-scale fishing: who grants them, what they guarantee or not, how to read them on a price list.

Updated 7 min readLiveCriée editorial team

Contents
  1. What are the fish and seafood labels and claims?
  2. The comparison table
  3. What does MSC really guarantee?
  4. Label Rouge, PGI, PDO: which seafood products?
  5. Line-caught fish, small-scale fishing: claims, not labels
  6. How to check a label before buying?
  7. Frequently asked questions

A label is a guarantee checked by an independent body on a specific point (sustainability of the fishery, superior quality, origin, farming method); a claim is information given by the seller, mandatory or optional, which is not certified in itself. "MSC" or "Label Rouge" are labels; "caught in the North-East Atlantic", "line" or "small-scale fishing" (petite pêche) are claims.

The difference matters to the professional buyer: a label can be shown on a menu or a fish counter provided the whole chain allows it; a claim is worth what the supplier's traceability is worth.

What are the fish and seafood labels and claims?

They fall into three families:

  1. Ecolabels, which concern the sustainability of fishing or farming: MSC, ASC, the public ecolabel Pêche durable (sustainable fishing).
  2. Official quality and origin signs, managed by INAO: Label Rouge, AOP (PDO), IGP (PGI), STG (TSG), and organic farming.
  3. Claims, mandatory (catch area, gear, "caught" or "farmed") or optional ("line", "small-scale fishing", port of landing).

The comparison table

Label or claimWho grants or checks itWhat it guaranteesWhat it does not guaranteeHow to spot it on a price list
MSCMarine Stewardship Council (international non-profit organisation); audits by independent certification bodiesHealthy stock, controlled impact on the ecosystem, effective fishery management; traceability through the chain of custodyFreshness, taste, French origin, a particular fishing gear (a trawl fishery can be certified)"MSC" on the line; the supplier must itself be certified and able to give its certification code
ASCAquaculture Stewardship Council; accredited bodiesResponsible farming (discharges, feed, biodiversity, antibiotics) and traceability to the siteWild fishing (out of scope); eating quality"ASC", on farmed products (salmon, prawn, sea bass, sea bream)
Pêche durable ecolabelPublic State label, managed by FranceAgriMer, in place since 2017; certification by a body approved by CofracA public standard in four parts: impact on the ecosystem, impact on the environment, living and working conditions on board, freshness and traceability of productsFarmed products (it targets fishing)"Pêche durable" or the ecolabel logo
Label RougeOfficial State sign; product specification approved by order, checked by a certification bodyA quality superior to that of the standard product, defined in a product specificationStock sustainability; an origin, unless the product specification sets one"Label Rouge", with the name of the labelled product
PGI (IGP)European Union, on a proposal from INAOA link to the territory: at least one production stage in the defined areaThat all stages take place in the area"IGP" followed by the protected name ("Huîtres Marennes Oléron")
PDO (AOP)European Union, on a proposal from INAOAll stages in the area, following recognised know-howSustainability; a price"AOP" followed by the name ("Moules de bouchot de la baie du Mont-Saint-Michel")
TSG (STG)European UnionA traditional production methodA geographical origin"STG" (bouchot mussels)
OrganicApproved certification bodies; Regulation (EU) 2018/848Farming according to the organic specification (feed, densities, treatments)Nothing on wild fish: it cannot be organic"Bio" or "AB", only on farmed products
"Line", "line-caught sea bass" (bar de ligne)Nobody: it is a gear claim given by the sellerThat the fish was caught on a hook (handline, trolling, longline)The size of the boat, the length of the fishing trip, quality; it is not a label"Ligne" after the species, sometimes abbreviated
"Caught in…"Mandatory claim for sale to the consumerThe catch area (FAO area and subarea or division in the North-East Atlantic and the Mediterranean)The vessel's flag; "North-East Atlantic" does not mean France"Origin" or "area" column
"Small-scale fishing" (petite pêche), "inshore" (côtier)Optional seller claimTo be fair, it must be verifiable: in France, small-scale fishing refers to vessels away from port for 24 hours at mostIt is not a label; no specific check"Petite pêche" or "côtier", sometimes abbreviated: ask the supplier what their claim covers

Sources at the end of the page. The ways these claims are written vary from one house to another: none is a standard.

What does MSC really guarantee?

MSC certifies fisheries, then the chain of custody: every company that buys, processes or resells a product under the logo must in turn be certified by an independent body. Practical consequence: a fish from an MSC fishery, bought from a non-certified supplier, can no longer be sold as MSC. MSC says so for restaurants, caterers and fish counters: to sell fish as certified, they too must be certified, under a version of the standard designed for those who sell to the consumer. And using the logo on a menu or a fish counter also requires a licence agreement with MSC.

MSC says nothing about freshness or flesh quality, and it does not exclude any gear: non-governmental organisations criticise the certification of some trawl or dredge fisheries. It is a resource management label, not a quality label.

Label Rouge, PGI, PDO: which seafood products?

Official signs remain rare for fresh seafood. Among them:

  • Label Rouge: "fines de claires vertes" oysters (the first Label Rouge seafood product, in 1989), "pousse en claire" (1999), "huîtres élevées en mer" (product specification approved in March 2026); king scallops in the shell and scallop meat (LA 11/02, product specification approved in September 2024), from inshore fishing, landed alive, at least 11 cm, sold at auction no later than 26 hours after fishing when sold whole (36 hours for those intended for shucking).
  • PGI: Huîtres Marennes Oléron, Coquille Saint-Jacques des Côtes-d'Armor, Bulot de la baie de Granville, Anchois de Collioure. Since 2024, its product specification limits the marketing of PGI oysters to 1 September to 31 May.
  • PDO: Moules de bouchot de la baie du Mont-Saint-Michel.
  • TSG: Moules de bouchot, which guarantees the farming method on stakes, not a region.

For oysters, the label does not replace the size grade or the category (fine, spéciale): the size grades guide details them.

Line-caught fish, small-scale fishing: claims, not labels

"Line" is a gear category within the meaning of the European regulation on consumer information ("hooks and lines"). It covers handlines, trolling and longlines. It is useful information, often a sign of little-damaged fish, but it is not a label: nobody certifies it, apart from collective schemes by line fishermen.

"Small-scale fishing" (petite pêche) refers to a navigation category in French maritime law: a vessel that is away from port for 24 hours at most (order of 11 August 2020). Beyond 24 hours and up to 96 hours, it is called inshore fishing (pêche côtière); beyond that, offshore fishing (pêche au large). These claims tell the length of the fishing trip, and so the likely age of the fish at landing, not the gear or sustainability.

"Caught in…" is mandatory for sale to the consumer, with the gear category and the claim "caught" or "farmed". Between professionals, this information must follow the lot so that the fishmonger or the restaurant owner can display it. The traceability and labelling guide details what to demand.

How to check a label before buying?

  1. Ask for the certificate

    For chain labels (MSC, ASC, organic, Label Rouge), ask for the supplier's: without a certificate in its name, the label stops with it.

  2. Check consistency

    Species, area, gear and label must go together: a Label Rouge king scallop is not sold in July, as fishing is closed; nor is a PGI Marennes Oléron oyster.

  3. Compare on an equal footing

    A label comes at a price; you need to be able to set it against the same species, at the same size grade, without a label. The price list guide explains how to bring offers back to a common basis.

Frequently asked questions

What does the MSC label guarantee on fish?

That the fish comes from a fishery assessed as sustainable (stock status, impact on the ecosystem, management) and that it was traced to you by companies that are all certified. It guarantees neither freshness, nor taste, nor French origin.

Is "line-caught sea bass" (bar de ligne) a label?

No. It is a gear claim: the sea bass was caught on a hook. It is not certified as such, and it says nothing about size grade or freshness.

Is there organic wild fish?

No. The European regulation on organic farming only applies to farmed products (fish, shellfish, seaweed). A wild fish cannot carry the organic claim.

What is the difference between PGI and PDO?

PDO requires all production stages to take place in the defined area; PGI requires only at least one. For seafood, the best-known PDO is that of the bouchot mussels of the Bay of Mont-Saint-Michel; the best-known PGI, that of the Marennes Oléron oysters.

What does "small-scale fishing" (petite pêche) mean?

In French maritime law, a small-scale fishing vessel is away from port for 24 hours at most. The claim suggests a fish landed soon after its capture, but it is not a checked label.

Does Label Rouge guarantee sustainable fishing?

No, it guarantees a superior quality defined by a product specification. Some product specifications add fishing requirements (inshore, sorting on board), but stock sustainability is a matter for ecolabels.

Sources

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