ANABAC Wants The Sustainable Logo For IO Yellowfin Catches

ANABAC is going for a scope extension to add yellowfin to its already MSC certified Indian Ocean purse seine skipjack catches. It will be assessed as an additional Principle 1 for the target species. This came after the fishery merged with Echebastar IO purse seine skipjack fishery earlier this year. The CAB, Bureau Veritas, recently published an Announcement Comment Draft Report (ACDR) for the scope extension. The report read: “The client has requested this scope extension in light of recent developments addressing key concerns previously raised about the status and management of Indian Ocean yellowfin.” Last year, IOTC scientists reported that the yellowfin is no longer overfished but cautioned fishing fleets that the 2024 assessment has data discrepancies, so catch quotas are still critical.

The deadline for stakeholders to comment on the ACDR is June 12, 5 pm UTC.

The US Pacific Tuna Group (USPTG) got an MSC certification for the scope extension to add EPO bigeye catches and two more vessels, flagged to Nicaragua and Ecuador, to the already certified fishery. A report from the CAB, SCS Global Services, read that the assessment was conducted, and the findings met the MSC Principles and Criteria for sustainable fishing.