One of the world’s most notorious illegal fishing vessels has been captured by the Indonesian navy after a three week chase in the Indian Ocean. While there are no reports of unlawful tuna...
Tuna Fishing News
Dongwon’s Turnaround On Marketing FAD-Free
South Korean Dongwon Industries, owner of US brand StarKist, shows a potential major shift in its attitude towards FAD-free tuna with its recent entrance into MSC assessment. For over the past...
Longline VDS Continues To Present Challenges For PNA
For over five years, the PNA has been trying to officially implement the Vessel Day Scheme (VDS) for tuna longliners fishing in the parties’ EEZs. Although the way the longline fleet operates...
WCPO One-Stop Data Source: Is It Useful?
The new “one-stop source” for tuna fisheries data related to the Western Pacific region offers insight into a number of areas, ranging from fish stocks to economics. Rather than giving its own...
Vietnamese ‘Deckhand’ Saves Captain From Sinking US Longliner
A Vietnamese deckhand was working aboard a US-flagged tuna longliner when it was reportedly struck by two rogue waves causing the vessel to sink. The worker however has been said to have saved...
“Big Jump” In Majuro Tuna Transshipments
March was a busy month for purse seine tuna transshipments in the WCPO hub of Majuro, Marshall Islands, with traffic picking up considerably from the first two months of the year. Still,...
ISSF Launches Interactive Tool For RFMO Stock Ratings
A new interactive tool that enables users to easily discover the health of tuna stocks in the different ocean areas has been launched by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation...
Poor Fishing Drives Indian Ocean Prices Up
Prices concluded on frozen whole round yellowfin and skipjack in the Indian Ocean hub of the Seychelles have both climbed substantially, after hitting a low point in February this year. A...
MSC In Sight For French Polynesian Longliners
Another tuna fishery is nearing MSC approval, as the catch of albacore and yellowfin from French Polynesian longliners has been recommended for the sustainable certification. A final stage of...
UN Commends Thai Tuna Processors In Tackling Labor Issues
Following a visit to Thailand, the United Nations has commended the government’s progress in human rights and forced labor abuses with the tuna processing sector singled out for contributing...
Dongwon Also Goes For Sustainable MSC Stamp In WCPO
South Korea’s largest force in tuna fishing, Dongwon Industries, has initiated two separate MSC assessments and hopes for successful conclusions in less than a year. One is for purse seiners...
Inspector Pleads Guilty To “Wire Fraud” Involving Hansen Tuna Helicopters
An inspector from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud after issuing airworthiness certificates to tuna free-school spotting helicopters in...
OPAGAC’s Global FIP: What Will €3 Million Be Spent On?
The representative of the Spanish tuna purse seine fleet, OPAGAC, recently announced that it would pump more millions into its global pursuit for MSC certification for the vessels under its...
EPO Boatowners Face High Costs Amid Slashed SKJ Catch
The notably low EPO skipjack catch this year, and in the latter months of 2017, is having a significant impact on the operational costs for fleets in the region, and therefore on market prices...
Filipino Seiners Begin Year With Less Activity In PNG Waters
Filipino fleets fishing in PNG waters have been found to have less fishing activity at the beginning of this year, compared to 2017. Research from Atuna shows the vessel activity of two major...
NGOs: Circle Hooks Not Enough To Reduce Bycatch In Longline Fisheries
Several environmental groups, including Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) and Greenpeace are calling for longline fisheries to go beyond the use of circle hooks and implement a series of...
Korean Warship Searches For Fishermen Kidnapped By Pirates
A South Korean warship has been deployed to search for three Korean tuna fishermen who were allegedly kidnapped by Nigerian pirates in West African waters last week. The Ghana-flagged pole and...
Global Fishing Watch Defends Fisheries Study Following Criticism
The non-profit organization, Global Fishing Watch (GFW) has released a statement responding to criticism from a fisheries scientist who argued its latest study failed to provide any new...
PNA Gets Ready For ‘Smart’ World Tuna Day
In just over one month’s time the world will be celebrating World Tuna Day, for the second time since it was ratified by the United Nations. The PNA has decided its theme for May 2nd will be...
PNA’s MSC Recertification Now Official
The MSC recertification of the PNA free-school tuna fishery, which had already been assured by an Independent Adjudicator decision, has now become official. This means the fishery gets a new...