A bill with the aim to bring more oversight to the commercial fishing industry in Hawaii in terms of migrant workers, has been killed. The decision is welcomed by Hawaii’s longline tuna fleet,...
Fishing
Spanish Exporter Demands Fair Bluefin Distribution
Balfegó Group, one of Spain’s top fresh tuna exporters, calls on the Spanish government to ensure the legal rights of the firms that have helped the recovery of bluefin stocks. It is also...
Seychelles & Mauritius: 2 Big IO Players Join Forces
The newly revised fisheries agreement between the Seychelles and Mauritius hints at a will for stronger management and development of the two nation’s tuna sectors, as well as taking steps to...
Spanish Seiners Heavily Hit By Yellowfin Catch Cut
The Spanish seiner fleet will have to cut its yellowfin landings much more dramatically than most other nations operating in the Indian Ocean, in order to comply the heavy catch reduction...
How FADs Drifted Into MSC Assessment
MSC’s launch of a simplification pilot of its fisheries assessment process comes in reaction to stakeholder concerns, and is an effort from the organization to uphold and improve its...
African Seiner Agreement To Smooth TU Supply
A new fishing agreement between the Seychelles and Mauritius is set to create a smoother supply of whole round tuna to the Thai Union Europe owned cannery, Indian Ocean Tuna (IOT) in the...
MSC Candidate Echebastar Strongly Reliant On FADs
Last week it was announced that Echebastar’s purse seine fleet has entered full assessment for MSC certification for its Indian Ocean FAD and free-school skipjack catch; a remarkable move...
EII Breaks Silence On Mexican MSC
The Earth Island Institute (EII) has spoken out after a period of quiet related to the potential MSC certification of the Mexican EPO purse seine tuna fishery, a fishery that partly uses...
Tuna Fishermen Arrested For Drug Smuggling
A Spanish flagged handline vessel with a fishing license for bluefin was found with drugs onboard in Canary Islands’ waters this weekend. Askada Primero, with a gross tonnage of around 16 M/T,...
What Does 2017 Hold In Store For EPO?
The publishing of annual catch statistics and IATTC’s recent meeting, with the reaction to the measures adopted, have prompted much discussion about the future prospects of the EPO. This week,...
Atuna Readers: Drop Gear Type
The credibility of the tuna industry is largely determined by how much belief consumers have in the sustainability standards it operates to. With a balance to be struck between well-informed...
A Lack Of Protection Makes Observer A Risky Job
Not enough is being done to ensure the safety of observers working onboard tuna vessels, with a lack of transparency and no real responsibility being taken by any party, being among the...
Historic Study Reveals Busiest Transshipment Locations
For the first time, the footprint of global at-sea transshipment has been revealed, with satellite data spanning five years being compiled and made available to the public. Global Fishing...
Japanese Could Face Jail Time Over Bluefin Violations From 2018
Penalties will be given to violators who fish too much bluefin in Japanese waters from the beginning of next year, if planned restrictions are imposed. This is in accordance with international...
Echebastar’s Second Try For MSC On FAD Catch
The Spanish Echebastar purse seine fleet has once again entered into full MSC assessment, this time for only its skipjack tuna catch in the Indian Ocean, part of a simplification piloting...
Cook Island Longline Controls Still Under Construction
Discussions on how to most effectively succeed with the Quota Management System (QMS) for the tuna longliner fleet in the Cook Islands are still taking place, despite the scheme first being...
Thai Union Writes Off Multi-Million Dollar Fleet
Thai Union has brought the curtain down on the operations of its Ghanaian seiner fleet, written off as a “non-current” asset pending sale. Owned by subsidiary, TTV Ltd., the fleet consists of...
Solomon Islands’ EU Tuna Trade Saved
PNA nation, Solomon Islands, has seen its IUU yellow card warning lifted by the EU, after significant improvement to eradicate unlawful fishing has been identified from its government. The...
Observer Safety Threats Heightened In EPO?
Measures taken by IATTC member nations run the risk of inadvertently ramping up the pressure on observers, according to WWF, which has urged the RFMO to implement improved safety measures...
Global Tuna Catch From “Healthy” Stocks Drops
Despite some commercial tuna stocks having seen a recently improved sustainability status, the amount of global tuna catch fished from what are rated as “healthy” populations stays on a...