Saving Seafood

SFP sees improvement in sustainability of fisheries used for fishmeal, oil

October 9, 2018 — More than 90% of the fish used for fishmeal and fish oil from the Atlantic and eastern Pacific oceans now come from fisheries that are “reasonably well-managed (or better)”, according to the latest annual report on reduction fisheries by the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP).

SFP said its report, which analyzes 26 reduction fishery stocks worldwide, found that 91% of the total catch volume came from stocks that scored 6 or better on all five criteria outlined by SFP’s FishSource database. That’s an 8% increase over last year.

Poorly managed fisheries accounted for 9% of the catch, a drop from 16% last year.

Of the stocks listed in “very good condition,” the report singled out the Antarctic krill fishery in the Atlantic Southern Ocean as being particularly well-managed by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

China retaliates against US tariffs; seafood largely unaffected

September 19, 2018 — China has retaliated against US tariffs, but seafood will be largely unaffected by its counter-measures.

On Sept. 18, China announced it would levy new tariffs of up to 10% on imports of US goods worth $60 billion. The measures came in retaliation to US tariffs of 10% on $200bn worth of Chinese goods, confirmed by president Donald Trump’s administration the same day.

Both sets of tariffs will come into effect on Sept. 24.

China said the counter-measures were to “defend the legitimate rights and interests of the Chinese economy caused by the violation of international obligations by the US”. Prior to the announcement in a more solemn statement it said the US measures were “regretful”.

Among the 5,000-plus US products to be hit are smoked Pacific salmon and a type of fishmeal (see below). No other fisheries or seafood products are affected.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News   

 

Sustainable Omega 3 Consumption: A Positive Trend Set to Increase

September 5, 2018 — The following was released by Friend of the Sea:

The size of the global omega 3 supplement industry has grown enormously in recent years. Evidence from the market shows that more and more consumers worldwide are demanding fish oils and nutrients which are not only healthy and of high quality, but are also respectful of the marine environment. After decades of campaigns by environmental activists and enlightened industry operators, the message has finally reached a rising number of eco-conscious individuals and households globally.

Friend of the Sea Standard for Omega 3

Back in 2010, Friend of the Sea (FoS), an independent certification scheme set up two years earlier to assess the environmental sustainability associated with seafood from fisheries and aquaculture, felt the urgent need to introducing a specific standard for producers of fish oil, fishmeal, fish feed and omega-3 supplements. According to this, accredited third-party certification bodies certify that the oil originates only from fisheries are compliant with Friend of the Sea sustainable fishing requirements, including good fishery management, selective fishing gears and social responsibility, and that a full chain of custody is in place throughout the supply and the production chain.

The fish contained in certified omega 3 products can be traced back to certified fisheries which have been independently assessed to meet Friend of the Sea’s widely recognised standard for sustainable wild fishing. These fisheries are well managed and their impacts on the environment minimized so that seafood supplies are safeguarded for future generations.

The origin of certified fish oil

Today, 439 companies adhere voluntarily to Friend of the Sea standard for fish oil, fishmeal, fish feed and omega-3 supplement, an increase of around 477% compared with 2015 when there were only 76.

“As the leading globally recognised standard program for sustainable seafood, we are enthusiastic about scoring and sharing the positive change in attitude towards environmental sustainability and social accountability occurring also in the nutraceutical sector,” claims Paolo Bray, Founder and Director of Friend of the Sea. “Consumers worldwide can now have wider access to sustainable products on the shelves and we are convinced of an even brighter future for the sector.”

Certified oils originate mostly from approved Peruvian anchovy fisheries and fleet – Engraulis ringens – (29%), Antarctic krill – Euphausia superba – (22%), European sardine – Sardina pilchardus (8%), European anchovy – Engraulis encrasicolus – (7%), Chub mackerel – Scomber japonicus (7%), Atlantic cod – Gadus morhua – (3%). The remaining 24% derives from various species such as salmon, tuna and squid which are equally certified, processed and usually refined and blended.

Read the full release here

Tariffs set to take toll on Alaska seafood exports and imports

August 30, 2018 — More seafood tariffs in Trump’s trade war with China are hitting Alaska coming and going.

On July 6, the first 25 percent tax went into effect on more than 170 U.S. seafood products going to China. On Aug. 23 more items were added to the list, including fishmeal from Alaska.

“As of right now, nearly every species and product from Alaska is on that list of tariffs,” said Garrett Evridge, a fisheries economist with the McDowell Group.

Alaska produces more than 70,000 metric tons of fishmeal per year (about 155 million pounds), mostly from pollock trimmings, with salmon a distant second. The pollock meal is used primarily in Chinese aquaculture production, while salmon meal goes mostly to pet food makers in the U.S.

In 2017 about $70 million worth of fishmeal from Alaska pollock was exported to China from processing plants all over the state.

Read the full story at the Alaska Journal of Commerce

US fishmeal producers left exposed by China’s 25% tariff blow

August 16, 2018 — US fishmeal producers — including the US’ largest fishmeal producer Omega Protein — are “certainly in some trouble” after China announced last week it would impose 25% tariffs on imports from the country, said a fishmeal industry analyst.

Jean-Francois Mittaine, an analyst with 30 years’ experience in the sector, told Undercurrent News Omega Protein and others in the sector will struggle to find new markets as Chinese importers turn to alternative sources. This will hit both the menhaden fisheries of the Gulf of Mexico and the pollock fishmeal industry of Alaska.

“For the Americans it is a problem,” said Mittaine. “I don’t see what they’re going to do with their fishmeal.”

Last Wednesday, China’s Ministry of Commerce said it would impose an additional tariff on imports of US fishmeal of 25% (HS code 23012010). The ingredient used in animal and fish feed was among 333 US goods worth $16 billion in annual trade targeted.

The Chinese counter-move will take effect immediately after the US imposes tariffs on the same amount of Chinese goods on Aug 23.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Peru’s Anchovy Season Has Officially Ended With Shortfall

February 2, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — Peru’s anchovy fishing season officially concluded at the end of January. Fishing was constrained by fishing bans and restrictions put in place due to the large percentage of juveniles.

The bans were lifted in early January, but the season closed less than a month later due to the beginning of spawning.

According to Wayne Bacon of Hammersmith Marketing Ltd., the Peruvian anchovy fishery failed to reach their quota. The total catch appears to be at 650,000 m/t, which is under the anticipated quota by approximately 850,000 tons.

The catch will produce 148,000 metric tons of fishmeal.

Trade sources told Bacon that approximately 160,000 m/t of fishmeal has been presold. With production expected to be less than 150,000 metric tons, there is speculaton that there will be limited supplies for new sales, not already contracted.

This sets the stage for prices of fishmeal to increase.

This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.

 

Omega Protein sets date to decide on Cooke deal

November 27, 2017 — Cooke Aquaculture will know as soon as Dec. 19, a week before Christmas, whether it’s getting what it hoped to find under the tree: a large Houston, Texas-based company that catches menhaden and reduces it to fishmeal and fish oil.

That’s the date Omega Protein has set for a shareholder vote on its proposed acquisition by the Cooke’s New Brunswick, Canada-based parent company, according to a new Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

SFP report: Better management happening for reduction fisheries

October 30, 2017 — Sustainable Fisheries Partnership has released its annual sustainability overview of reduction fisheries for 2017, showing an overall improvement in their management.

The report, “Reduction Fisheries: SFP Fisheries Sustainability Overview 2017,” reviewed 20 of the most significant fisheries used for the production of fishmeal and fish oil, concluding that 81 percent of the total catch volume out of those fisheries came from stocks that are “reasonably well managed or better.”

“This compares to 57.4 percent last year – a very large improvement,” according to an SFP press release.

An estimated 1.7 million metric tonnes –  or 17 percent – of the total catch used for reduction purposes came from poorly managed fisheries, “a significant drop compared to 42.6 percent last year,” according to SFP.

Of the 20 stocks used for the survey, 10 have fisheries certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, 19 have fisheries that are covered by the IFFO Responsible Sourcing certification, and three are covered by fishery improvement projects. According to the SFP, more than two-thirds of the production covered in its study comes from fisheries that are MSC-certified or under full assessment (25 percent), or in a FIP (44 percent). Those include the newly launched FIPs for Peruvian anchovy (north-central stock) and Mauritanian small pelagic species.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Fishmeal-free info deemed misleading and misguided

October 6, 2017 — A competition established to inspire the increased use of alternative ingredients to fishmeal in aquafeeds has been lambasted for “the organisers’ use of negative messaging, exaggeration and misinformation in relation to marine ingredients”.

The winners of the fishmeal-free feed (F3) challenge were announced in Dublin yesterday. However, a statement from IFFO, the marine ingredients organization, – while congratulating the winners – laments that: “Unfortunately, the F3 Challenge organisers have refused our offers to enter into dialogue or meet and provide up-to-date facts, instead choosing to seek publicity through a number of misleading or false statements.”

IFFO rubbishes claims that marine ingredients are not sustainable by pointing to the fact that “over 45% of the global production of fishmeal and fish oil is now independently certified as being safe and environmentally responsible, including in its sourcing of raw materials, a figure that far exceeds any other source of feed ingredient”.

Read the full story at The Fish Site

U.S. Gulf and Atlantic Menhaden Fisheries Enter MSC Sustainability Assessment

HOUSTON — June 15, 2017 — The following was released today by Omega Protein:

Last week, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) announced that the U.S. Atlantic menhaden and U.S. Gulf of Mexico menhaden fisheries have entered the evaluation process in order to acquire the respected blue ecolabel for sustainable fishing. The assessments are being conducted by third-party independent auditors SAI Global at the request of Omega Protein.

Atlantic Menhaden

Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus) are small, oily fish that are caught commercially in a fish meal and fish oil fishery and a bait fishery. They appear in estuaries and coastal waters from northern Florida to Nova Scotia. While considered unfit for direct human consumption, menhaden caught via the modern purse seine method are used in fish meal and fish oil for human and animal nutrition, due to their high natural concentration of healthy omega-3 fatty acids. Menhaden are also valuable as bait for fishermen targeting other commercially valuable species, such as lobster.

Gulf Menhaden

Gulf menhaden (Brevoortia patronus) have a similar biology to Atlantic menhaden and are also caught in both a fish meal and fish oil fishery and a bait fishery. They have a Gulf-wide range, from the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, across the western and northern Gulf to eastern Florida. Adults are found in nearshore waters and lower bays, while juveniles are found in fresh and brackish estuaries and rivers.

The Second Largest U.S. Fishery

Between the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, the U.S. menhaden fishery is the second largest in the country by weight, trailing only Alaska pollock. The purse seine fishery is notable for being extremely clean; according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Chesapeake Bay Office, it is “one of the most selective, and effective fisheries,” as evidenced by an insignificant bycatch.

Commercial landings of Atlantic menhaden peaked in the 1950s, while commercial landings of Gulf menhaden peaked in the early 1980s. Harvest levels of menhaden have significantly decreased, essentially tracking fishing effort, since those high points, and the most recent stock assessments of Gulf menhaden and Atlantic menhaden confirm that neither species is undergoing overfishing or being overfished.

Statements from Omega Protein and MSC

“The MSC blue ecolabel is the gold standard for sustainable fishing worldwide. We are extremely proud of the work we’ve done to conduct our fishing operations sustainably, and we’re excited to share this work with the auditors as they undertake this assessment to the MSC Standard,” said Ben Landry, the Director of Public Affairs for Omega Protein. “We are confident that the menhaden fishery will meet the MSC Standard, recognizing its advances in responsible harvesting methods as we continue to pursue the most sustainable fishing practices available.”

“We welcome the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic menhaden purse seine fisheries’ decision to enter MSC assessment,” said Eric Critchlow, MSC U.S. program director. “This is an important milestone for the MSC and for fishing in the United States.”

MSC’s Standard for Sustainable Fishing

The MSC Fisheries Standard is designed to assess the sustainability of fishery practices and management methods. The standards used to evaluate fisheries have been developed in deliberation with scientists, industry, and conservation groups, and reflect the most up-to-date fisheries science and management practices.

The MSC Standard is based on three core principles that every fishery must meet in order to be MSC certified:

  1. Sustainable fish stocks: Fishing activity must be at a level which ensures it can continue indefinitely.
  2. Minimizing environmental impact: Fishing operations must be managed to maintain the structure, productivity, function, and diversity of the ecosystem.
  3. Effective Management: The fishery must comply with relevant laws and have a management system that is responsive to changing circumstances.

The assessment is being carried out by the certification body SAI Global Assurance Services and has an expected completion date of December 2017. The MSC assessment process is open for public input. Those interested in the menhaden fishery can participate by contacting Jean Ragg at Jean.Ragg@saiglobal.com.