July 21, 2017

Latest Fishing Headlines

Tuna Market Intelligence
 
Market Update - Skipjack prices in Bangkok have reached between $1,950 and $1,970 per metric ton, a slight increase since the end of June.

PNA VDS Update - Of the total 45,590 PNA and Tokelau vessel days available for purse seiners, 23,049 - 51% - have been used as of July 7th. This is a 5% increase over days reached by the same time in 2016 where 46% vessel days (21,259) were used. Effort averaged about 4,000 days during both first and second quarters of 2017.

Since 2013, PNA has required purse seiners to meet strict requirements in order to maintain sustainability in their waters. Just last week PNA marked its 2,000th Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) trip. As PNA reached this benchmark, Pacifical, PNA's global marketing company, responded "Today we are proud to say that there are over 250 million consumer units of MSC certified tuna co-branded with the Pacifical logo being distributed in 26 countries spread over four continents."

American Tunaboat Assoc. Voices Opposition to Fishing Restrictions
 
US based American Tunaboat Association (ATA) has argued that the 2014 expansion of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument  (PRIMNM) by President Obama "had a particularly detrimental impact on the U.S. fishermen...and on the economy and prosperity of the American Samoa", whose economy is 80% dependent on the canneries.

"ATA strongly supports removing all fishing restrictions in all Marine National Monuments, thus restoring the conservation and management processes for highly migratory fish stocks established by U.S. law," wrote ATA executive director Brian Hallman in a letter last Friday to the US Interior Department which sought public comments on the federal agency's review of marine monuments designated by previous US Presidents going back to 1996.

When the PRIMNM was expanded, the ATA was among the first to voice its opposition, with Hallman telling Samoa News at the time that the now closed waters of the Pacific Remote Islands are "traditional fishing grounds" for the US fleet, based in American Samoa.
Mexico Issues Tuna Fishing Ban for Large Purse Seiners
 
Starting next July 29 the temporary closure for tuna fishing will begin to govern in order to maintain abundance levels and promote the sustainable use of this fishery resource.

The measure, announced by the  Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA), applies to Mexican-flagged tuna vessels of 182 and more metric tons of carrying capacity using purse seines.

The catch restriction will last until September 28, according to the Technical Opinion of the  National Fisheries and Aquaculture Institute (INAPESCA), and the scientific recommendations for the conservation of tunas in the Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPA), presented in 91st Special Meeting of the  Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission(IATTC) in 2017.
Maruha Nichiro's Pretax Profit Seen Surging 30% on Forex Gains 
 
Seafood company  Maruha Nichiro is expected to report a record pretax profit of around 8.5 billion yen ($76 million) for the April-June quarter, up 30% on the year, thanks to foreign exchange gains.

Maruha Nichiro, which imports various seafood products, used currency-forward contracts that turned out to value the yen higher than it actually was against the dollar during the quarter, helping to push up profit.

The pretax figure represents a record since 2007, when Maruha Nichiro Holdings was established through the merger of Maruha Group and Nichiro. The company was reorganized in April 2014, renamed as Maruha Nichiro.
Pevasa Becomes First Tuna Vessel Owner to Obtain Responsible Fishing Certificate
 
The fishing fleet of  Pevasa Group (Pesquería Vasco Montañesa SA), a founder of the Basque-Galician project Atunlo, has become the first in the world to obtain the certificate of Responsible Fishing Tuna (UNE 195006) for its good practices in the control of the fishing activity.

To the group, this achievement is a recognition of its excellence in management, sustainability, social conditions and safety at work.

The responsible tuna fishing certificate covers all the activities carried out by the tuna purse-seine fleet, from the control of fishing activity, through the implementation of good practices such as voluntarily taking observers onboard as well as social and safety conditions in ships.
Ecuador to Propose Alternative Tuna Conservation Measures for Eastern Pacific
 
Ecuador  will propose alternative management and conservation measures  at the upcoming meeting of the  Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) later this month. 

In a statement summarizing the Ecuadorian conservation proposals for IATTC, the extension of the "veda" closures was not seen as a valid option by a part of the Ecuadorian tuna industry.

"We believe that an alternative management proposal could be to migrate to a management system based on individual quotas per vessel," it said.

IATTC will hold a meeting in Mexico City on July 24-28, where new measures to improve tuna stocks in the eastern Pacific will be discussed and potentially implemented.
Call for Transparency Around Fisheries Observer Deaths
 
The environmental group, WWF, says measures to protect regional fisheries observers are not being adequately implemented.

The comment from the NGO's Pacific tuna programme manager Bubba Cook comes after the death of another Papua New Guinea fisheries observer on the job in the Pacific.

James Numbaru was serving as an observer on a Chinese-flagged purse seiner when he was reported missing late last month in Nauru waters.

His body has still not been recovered, and Nauru police ruled out foul play after a brief investigation.
Andalusia Seeks Bluefin Tuna Quota Restitution 
 
The  Government of Andalusia will request the central Government to restore bluefin tuna quota to the fishing operators who have undergone the measures of the recovery plan during the last 10 years and, as a consequence, have made it possible for the population of this species to increase in the Atlantic and Mediterranean.

This year the assessment data of the  Scientific Committee of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) on bluefin tuna will be announced and Andalusia expects the end of the plan imposed in 2007, which contributed to reduce the total allowable Catches (TACs) for years to allow the increase in the number of fish in the fishing grounds.

The request will be presented by the Director General of Fisheries and Aquaculture of Andalusia, Margarita Perez, to the  Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and the Environment, on Tuesday, at a meeting to discuss the future management of this fishery.
Long-Term Conservation Crucial to Rescue Eastern Pacific Tunas
 
As unsustainable fishing rates and practices continue to pressure multiple Eastern Pacific tuna populations, WWF is calling on governments to agree on long-term conservation and management measures for the international fishery, which is valued at $1 billion USD.  

 Last year, the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) held three successive meetings to reach agreement on conservation and management for bigeye, yellowfin and skipjack tuna populations. The resulting measures only cover fishing through the end of this year. Pacific bluefin tuna, which is highly depleted, is also in need of a long-term management plan.

 "IATTC members have spent a great deal of effort on short-term plans at a time when tuna populations require a more rigorous, more precautionary and a long-term management framework," said Pablo Guerrero, WWF LAC Fisheries Director.

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