In their certification of the fisheries in Faroese waters as sustainable MSC has set a condition that the fishing industry collaborates with the Faroese Marine Research Institute (FMRI) to assess the impact of the fisheries on the endangered species, including sea birds. It is therefore necessary to produce statistical material documenting the current conditions of the sea bird populations and going forward to document the development in these sea bird populations. Since no such statistical documentation is available, MSC has been unable to give a unconditional certification of fisheries of demersal species in Faroese waters.

Losing the MSC certification is therefore a potential risk as long as no initiative is taken to produce the necessary statistical information to carry out an impact assessment.

The fishing industry is also regularly met with similar requests from international environmental organisations.

This is one of the reasons the industry participants have initiated this project of establishing FISF, which in collaboration with FMRI coordinates this research project.