April 7, 2014 — A study to be published in Marine Policy estimates that between 20 percent and 32 percent of wild seafood imported into the U.S. comes from illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing. Valued at USD 1 billion (EUR 728 million) to USD 2 billion (EUR 1.5 million) annually, this represents between 15 to 26 percent of the total value of U.S. wild seafood imports.
The new study finds that the amount of IUU seafood entering the U.S. market is in line with global estimates of pirate fishing, assessed at 13 to 31 percent of global catch and valued at between USD 10 billion (EUR 7.3 billion) and USD 23.5 billion (EUR 17 billion) annually.
“This study unfortunately confirms what we have long suspected — that seafood from pirate fishing is getting into our markets. Illegal fishing undercuts honest fishermen and seafood businesses that play by the rules, and the U.S. should not be incentivizing pirate fishers by creating a legal market for their products,” said Beckie Zisser, Oceana ocean advocate.
Read the full story at Seafood Source