Landings by Philippines-flagged vessels fell slightly in the first half of 2021, with yellowfin having the lowest catches in a three-year period, according to the latest data from the...
Fishing
Ocean Family Recognized For Safety On Board Vessels
The Chinese tuna fishing firm Ocean Family was among the first batch of companies to be awarded the Blue Ocean Pioneer in Zhoushan. This recognition was granted for the safety of workers on...
ISSF Needs More Alignment Among Its Members For RFMO Success
In January this year, Susan Jackson, President of the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) in a blog entry said that “in 2021, all RFMOs must do better” in terms of their...
Peruvian Govt Is Not Enforcing Law On Foreign Vessels?
Foreign tuna vessels operating in the Peruvian EEZ are required to offload 30 percent of their catches in the country. However, the government seems to have forgotten to enforce this law, as...
Tri Marine FAD Sets In WCPO & PNA MSC Certified Without Objections
The Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) overseeing the Tri Marine Western and Central Pacific skipjack and yellowfin fishery MSC certification did not receive any objections since the final draft...
Somalia Latest IO Nation To Object To Yellowfin Plan
Somalia is the latest country to have joined the list of those opposing the quota cuts for yellowfin as proposed by the new rebuilding plan that was adopted by IOTC members in June. Last week,...
FCF Wants A Second MSC Cert Covering All PNA Zones
Taiwanese tuna trader, FCF, has announced that it will be entering assessment to get another MSC certification within the WCPFC convention area. This time it involves the Nauru skipjack,...
IUCN List States Some Tuna Stocks Are Better Despite Concerns
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has said that several tuna species are recovering due to conservation efforts but stocks in certain oceans such as the Pacific...
SKJ1.8:BKK Drops While Canners Are Hammered By Cost & Labor Challenges
The skipjack raw material price is clearly dropping in Bangkok but not fast enough for processors who are being hammered by various overhead costs such as exorbitant shipping rates and a hike...
Spanish Seiners Allowed To Share IO Yellowfin Quota
For the second year in a row, the Spanish fleet in the Indian Ocean (IO) will be allowed to share the country’s tuna quota. Boat owners fear that their vessels will fail to exhaust the...
Tuna Industry In Galicia Struggling To Spark Interest In Young People
The Spanish region of Galicia is struggling to get young people interested in becoming fishers. Currently, 65 percent of active sailors are of retirement age or higher, which in Spain is 65...
Family Business Goes For Controversial Atlantic Bluefin MSC Assessment
Another bluefin fishery has gone for MSC assessment which might stir up controversy just like last year. The Certification Assessment Body (CAB), DNV, announced on August 31 that Spanish...
WCPO 2020 Seiners Catches Fall By 9%, P&L Nosedived
Global tuna catches in 2020 were down mainly due to an 11 percent volume drop from the WCPO area. This was the result of lower purse seine skipjack landings as well as pole-and-line and...
Seychelles Combats IUU With High Fine For Sri Lankan Captain
Seychelles Supreme Court has fined the captain of a Sri Lankan-flagged longliner USD 167,000 for fishing in the nation’s waters without a license. On June 1, Mahalingam Kanapathi was arrested...
FADs For Super Seiners Cause Of IATTC Failure
The IATTC meeting finished last week and members did not manage to see eye-to-eye on new conservation measures for tropical tuna in the EPO. However, multiple sources that attended the meeting...
Major Global Tuna Highlights August
A lot happened in the tuna industry in the month of August. Prices of skipjack raw material increased in major trading hubs. IATTC’s meeting failed to reach a consensus for tuna stock measures...
Accused In Tuna Bonds Scandal Says He “Was Just A Facilitator”
The saga of the tuna bonds scandal in Mozambique continues as more details regarding embezzlement and money laundering among government officials and other related parties came to light during...
2020 Global Tuna Catches Down Six Percent
Overall tuna catches across the world fell in 2020 caused by a lower take from the biggest tuna fishing area, the WCPO. Disruptions in fishing operations due to COVID can be partly attributed...
IATTC Deal On FAD Reduction Blocked By Spanish Interests
IATTC members have once again failed to agree on conservation measures for tropical tuna in the EPO. The RFMO’s annual online meeting, which came to an end last Friday, represented the third...
Skipjack Catches Suspended From A Mexican Purse Seine MSC Certification
Part of the MSC certification of a Mexican tuna purse seine fishery has been suspended. Additionally, the same organization was recently denied a variation request that asked for more time to...