Worldwide, consumers in developed countries enjoy and demand wild fish products but at the same time view commercial fishers as “rapers and pillagers” of the aquatic environment. “Green tick” acceptability as embodied by the ISO 14000 and 9000 family of standards for individual businesses, will increasingly become an entry requirement to markets - and to enhanced consumer value and respect. Efforts to develop formal Environmental Management Systems (EMS) in fisheries have initially focused on very large corporate players (eg, Unilever via the Marine Stewardship Council), but ignored small fishing businesses for whom such processes were individually impractical. Leaders in Australian fishing industries need advice as to the “best” and most practical accreditation systems to implement; the concrete benefits to different types of fisheries which can be readily achieved; real examples of fisheries EMS successes, and an initial education strategy for delivering these components to industry leading fishing businesses. At the same time, FRDC seriously needs to publicly demonstrate its commitment to environmental planning and improvement through underpinning practical, industry driven environmental strategies – preferably in conjunction with key environmental players.