Soybeans from Argentina, one of the countries where COFCO International operates and where, in 2025, it was the third-largest agro-exporting company, behind Cargill and Viterra.
Photo: Adobe Stock.
COFCO International—the subsidiary of COFCO (China Oil and Foodstuffs Corporation), the Chinese state-owned enterprise which is China's largest agri-food company and one of the world's leading multinational agribusinesses—announced that the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) has included its Responsible Agriculture Standard (COFCO Standard) as an accepted certification scheme.
As the multinational company noted in its announcement, the ASC label is widely used and recognized in the seafood industry and sets strict requirements that aquaculture feed mills must meet, including sourcing ingredients that meet its criteria.
The incorporation now of COFCO International's Responsible Agriculture Standard in the latest ASC Feed Standard Accepted Certification Schemes List, published last week, makes it an accepted pathway to meet these requirements.
"The inclusion strengthens the role of the COFCO Standard in supplying certified sustainable feed ingredients to the aquaculture sector," the release read.
The Chinese state-owned agri-food company stated that this recognition is expected to drive further expansion of volumes certified under the COFCO Standard in aquaculture-driven markets, particularly in Southeast Asia and Latin America, where demand for certified sustainable feed ingredients is growing.
According to COFCO, its standard is designed to provide traceability at the farm level and responsibly produced raw materials, promoting environmental and social practices, including deforestation- and conversion-free (DCF) sourcing.
In this way, it contributes to the availability of raw materials with a smaller carbon footprint, helping customers reduce emissions and other environmental impacts associated with the products they source.
For its part, the ASC Feed Standard complements the ASC Farm Standard, which regulates responsible practices on aquaculture farms. Launched in May 2025, as of October 31, 2025, all ASC-certified farms must demonstrate that they source their feed exclusively from ASC Feed Standard-certified facilities.
Thus, the multinational agribusiness company emphasized that its inclusion in the ASC framework complements the existing recognition of the COFCO standard, which had previously been independently benchmarked to the European Feed Manufacturers Federation's (FEFAC) Soybean Sourcing Guidelines 2023 and recognized by the Consumer Goods Forum's Forest Positive Coalition as a credible approach to delivering DCF supply chains.
This new recognition comes as COFCO International continues to expand the adoption of its Responsible Agriculture Standard globally, including in Asia, where aquaculture is a major driver of demand for sustainable feed ingredients, whether terrestrial, as in the case of those supplied by COFCO, or marine, as IFFO - The Marine Ingredients Organisation - noted at its Members' Meeting 2026.
