Saving Seafood

Tuna brands slammed for “glacial” progress in addressing labor abuses

March 23, 2021 — A new report on labor abuses in the tuna-fishing industry points to “sustained abuse of workers” aboard vessels.

The report by the United Kingdom-based Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC), “All at sea: An evaluation of company efforts to address modern slavery in Pacific supply chains of canned tuna,” found labor abuse issues were worsening as a result of increased demand for tuna during the global COVID-19 crisis, which has forced vessels to stay at sea for longer intervals.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

U.S. imported $2.4 billion in illegally fished seafood in 2019, U.S. agency says

March 19, 2021 — The United States imported $2.4 billion worth of seafood from illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in 2019, representing 11% of total U.S. imports, the U.S. International Trade Commission said in a report released on Thursday.

The report, from an investigation requested by the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee in December 2019, found that the removal of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) seafood imports would increase the total operating income of the U.S. commercial fishing industry by an estimated $60.8 million. Seafood prices and catch sizes would increase for all species modeled.

The U.S. commercial fisheries that would benefit most include those targeting warmwater shrimp, sockeye salmon, bigeye tuna and squid, according to the report here.

Read the full story at Reuters

Fish detectives: the sleuths using ‘e-DNA’ to fight seafood fraud

March 17, 2021 — The first notable thing about the wild salmon fillet Dane Chauvel shows me is its colour – a rich red that, even over FaceTime, makes my mouth water. The second notable thing is that it’s definitely salmon.

This might not seem like a debatable fact. Chauvel is co-founder of Organic Ocean Seafood in Vancouver, Canada, housed in a historic building at the mouth of the 854-mile (1,375km) Fraser River, one of Canada’s main salmon courses. The company supplies many high-end restaurants, and wild-caught salmon makes up a large proportion of its sales.

But as the exclusive Guardian Seascape report indicating the extent of global seafood fraud has shown, it’s not always so easy to tell what your fish actually is. In the analysis of 44 studies worldwide, more than one in three seafood samples of 9,000 analysed were mislabelled.

Chauvel is not surprised by the revelations. “The fishing industry is a mess,” he says. “It’s dysfunctional.”

He can prove, however, that the salmon in his hands is a salmon, because the fish has been included in a random DNA testing programme – the world’s first.

Read the full story at The Guardian

Revealed: seafood fraud happening on a vast global scale

March 15, 2021 — A Guardian Seascape analysis of 44 recent studies of more than 9,000 seafood samples from restaurants, fishmongers and supermarkets in more than 30 countries found that 36% were mislabelled, exposing seafood fraud on a vast global scale.

Many of the studies used relatively new DNA analysis techniques. In one comparison of sales of fish labelled “snapper” by fishmongers, supermarkets and restaurants in Canada, the US, the UK, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, researchers found mislabelling in about 40% of fish tested. The UK and Canada had the highest rates of mislabelling in that study, at 55%, followed by the US at 38%.

Sometimes the fish were labelled as different species in the same family. In Germany, for example, 48% of tested samples purporting to be king scallops were in fact the less coveted Japanese scallop. Of 130 shark fillets bought from Italian fish markets and fishmongers, researchers found a 45% mislabelling rate, with cheaper and unpopular species of shark standing in for those most prized by Italian consumers.

Other substitutes were of endangered or vulnerable species. In one 2018 study, nearly 70% of samples from across the UK sold as snapper were a different fish, from an astounding 38 different species, including many reef‐dwelling species that are probably threatened by habitat degradation and overfishing.

Read the full story at The Guardian

NOAA Plays Pivotal Role in Combating Illegal, Unregulated, and Unreported Fishing Globally

March 15, 2021 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

Combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing is a top priority for the United States. NOAA Fisheries is proud to be a leader in the nation’s comprehensive approach to this battle. It includes many government agencies working in concert to identify bad actors, suspect vessels, and ports that have no interest in protecting the integrity of the seafood supply. IUU fishing damages nations’ economies, threatens marine resources, and harms U.S. fishing fleets and consumers. Due to the inherent nature of IUU fishing, it is almost impossible to accurately quantify the full global economic impacts resulting from these activities. However, there is little disagreement that it is in the billions, or even tens of billions, of dollars each year.

The scope of IUU fishing can also be broad, occurring at various points throughout the world’s massive seafood supply chain. That means our efforts to combat IUU fishing must be multi-pronged. We work with U.S. and state agencies to promote compliance with import requirements that help prevent IUU fish and fish products from entering U.S. markets. We also work with foreign governments and regional fisheries management organizations to promote international cooperation to achieve effective, responsible marine stewardship and ensure sustainable fisheries management.​

In 2018, NOAA Fisheries established the U.S. Seafood Import Monitoring Program. SIMP mandates permitting, reporting, and recordkeeping requirements for importers of certain seafood products. It supports the identification of IUU fish and fish products and misrepresented seafood while complementing existing NOAA traceability programs for imported seafood products. The program requires documentation from the point of harvest to the point of entry into U.S. commerce for 13 seafood species. These species were identified as particularly vulnerable to IUU fishing and/or seafood fraud. SIMP seeks to trace seafood entering our domestic supply chain—deterring and combating IUU fishing and seafood fraud. Our continued implementation of SIMP includes:

  • Modernizing and integrating the technology system that supports SIMP
  • Focusing on the interplay between audits and enforcement
  • Making any necessary changes, both programmatic and regulatory, to more effectively implement the program 

Read the full release here

Oceana, NRDC call for expansion of Seafood Import Monitoring Program

March 8, 2021 — Marine sustainability non-governmental organization Oceana public on 3 March calling for the expansion of the U.S. Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP) and for mandatory full-chain traceability requirements for all seafood sold in the United States.

The report, “Transparency and Traceability: Tools to Stop Illegal Fishing,” criticizes the current limitations of SIMP, in that the law currently applies to just 13 types of imported seafood and traces them to the U.S. border, not beyond. Extending SIMP to cover all seafood species sold in the United States, and requiring that all be covered by full-chain traceability from boat to plate, would reduce species mislabeling and help in the fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, Oceana said.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Sanford Limited says it accepts judge’s decision on forfeiture of vessel due to illegal fishing

March 5, 2021 — Auckland, New Zealand-based Sanford Limited said in a statement on 26 February that it will work “constructively to expeditiously address the matter of forfeiture” of its NZD 20 million (USD 14.4 million, EUR 12 million) vessel San Waitaki after it was caught illegally fishing in a protected area.

“We wish to say upfront that we absolutely accept the judge’s decision. We are very sorry about what happened and are disappointed in ourselves,” the company said in a statement.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing is a growing issue worldwide. FIU hosts conference in search of solutions

March 5, 2021 — Every time wild-caught fish is bought at a restaurant, store or waterfront dock, there is a one in five chance that it was caught outside of the law, according to the Pew Charitable Trusts.

Illegal, unreported and unregulated – IUU – fishing is a growing issue worldwide. The global, economic and environmental effects are catastrophic, with coastlines around Latin America being some of the most impacted.

Recently during a telephonic press briefing, United States Coast Guard Vice Admiral Steven Poulin spoke on the urgency of the matter and the role the Coast Guard is playing in addressing this problem.

“IUU fishing undermines coastal state sovereignty,” Poulin said. “We in the Coast Guard are putting our strategies to address this problem into action.”

Southern Command is also making IUU fishing one of its priorities. At the IUU Fishing Conference on Feb. 3, Southern Command and other key groups emphasized the need for international cooperation, collaboration, leveraged technology, and transparency. Hosted by FIU’s Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy, the conference reached more than 3,000 viewers from more than 49 countries.

Read the full story at FIU News

US Coast Guard conducts long-range Indo-Pacific fisheries patrol

March 4, 2021 — The Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A.-based Coast Guard cutter Kimball wrapped up a two-week expeditionary patrol in support of counter-illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fisheries enforcement, “furthering the United States’ commitment to regional security and partnerships,” according to Coast Guard officials.

The Kimball is one of the newest national security cutters to be home-ported in Hawaii. The advanced 418-foot ships displace 4,600 long tons. With a top speed in excess of 28 knots and a range of 12,000 nautical miles, it can maintain patrols up to 90 days, carrying a crew of up to 150.

Read the full story at Seafood Source