Saving Seafood

Analyst says China not meeting US seafood purchase commitments under trade agreement

May 17, 2021 — China is not living up to its commitments to purchase U.S. seafood under the 2020 trade agreement between the two sides, according to a trade analyst at a U.S. fishery trade body.

The U.S. China Economic and Trade Agreement, also known as the “phase one deal,” was signed in early 2020 and bound China to USD 200 billion (EUR 164.5 billion) in purchases from the U.S. through increasing orders of certain commodities, including seafood. The increase was based on figures for 2017 – the last full year before the trade war began.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Over 800 Seafood Industry Members Write to Oppose the Fisheries Provisions of the House Democrats’ Climate Bill

November 16, 2020 — Over 800 participants in our nation’s seafood economy wrote today to Chairman Raúl Grijalva of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources to express deep concern regarding Title II of the Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act, recently introduced by the committee Democrats. The signers of the letter argue that the bill would undermine our nation’s world-class system of fisheries management, harming fishermen and the coastal communities they sustain. They urged the chairman to fundamentally rethink Title II’s provisions.

Of particular concern is the bill’s mandate that would compel the Executive Branch to establish Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) that prohibit all commercial fishing activity across at least 30 percent of the nation’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) by 2030.  The proposal is known by the slogan “30 by 30”.

The House Natural Resources Committee plans a hearing tomorrow to cover this bill, among several others.

The letter was organized by the At-sea Processors Association, the National Fisheries Institute, Saving Seafood, and the Seafood Harvesters of America.

“United States fisheries management is the envy of the world. Science-based management under the Magnuson-Stevens Act is a remarkable example of bipartisan policy success. It is achieving exceptional environmental outcomes, preserving vital cultural traditions, creating jobs in communities across the United States, and delivering food with one of the lowest carbon footprints of any protein on Earth. Title II of the Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act will jeopardize that remarkable record of success.”
— Matt Tinning, Director of Sustainability and Public Affairs at the At-sea Processors Association

“The over 800 signers of this letter hail from different regions and participate in different parts of the seafood supply chain. However, we are all united in our commitment to using defensible, quality science to ensure that our nation’s fisheries are harvested sustainably for the benefit of this and future generations. ‘30 by 30’ is a campaign slogan, not a scientific proposal. The legislation would undermine the Magnuson-Stevens Act and its fundamental principle of using the best available scientific information to inform our fisheries management decisions.”
— Robert B. Vanasse, Executive Director of Saving Seafood

“The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is among the world’s very best fishery managers.  This bill appears to ignore that expertise and process and just walls off parts of the ocean to fishing. It disregards generations of science-based work and community consensus. Drawing arbitrary lines on a map is not science, it’s politics. Lines on a map don’t actually promote sustainability but they can harm livelihoods that depend on real sustainability work.”
— John Connelly, President of the National Fisheries Institute

“High-value benthic habitat, such as deep-sea corals, are important parts of the marine ecosystem and worthy of science-based protection.  The current system is working to deliver exactly those protections to hundreds of thousands of square miles of sensitive habitat through the Regional Fishery Management Council process. We should build on what is working, not create a new, parallel process.”
— Leigh Habegger, Executive Director of Seafood Harvesters of America

Read the full letter here

At-Sea Processors’ Gilmore Announces Retirement, New Hire Comes from Environmental Non-Profit

February 28, 2019 — The following was released by the At-Sea Processors Association:

Jim Gilmore

The At-sea Processors Association (APA) announced today that Jim Gilmore, its Director of Public Affairs, will retire June 30, 2019, after 30 years with the association. Gilmore will be replaced by Matt Tinning, the current Associate Vice President for Oceans at the Environmental Defense Fund, a prominent U.S.-based non-profit noted for pursuing collaborative, market-based solutions to environmental problems.

During his tenure at APA, Gilmore directed the organization’s public affairs and corporate social responsibility programs, which helped to establish the Alaska pollock industry’s leadership position in global seafood sustainability. Among Gilmore’s accomplishments are his work to enact the landmark American Fisheries Act, which paved the way for a catch share program for the largest U.S. fishery, the Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands Alaska pollock fishery. The advent of catch share management enabled the Alaska pollock catcher/processor sector to optimize food production, further minimize fishing effects on the environment, and strengthen the fleet’s international market competitiveness. For almost two decades, Gilmore has also led the Alaska pollock industry’s effort to become the largest certified sustainable fishery in the world. By achieving and maintaining certifications of the fishery under both the Marine Stewardship Council and Alaska Responsible Fisheries Management programs, his work has solidified Alaska pollock’s reputation as one of the world’s best managed fisheries.

Matt Tinning

APA’s executive director Stephanie Madsen said, “We are very grateful to Jim for his years of staunch advocacy and unwavering commitment to strengthening the Alaska pollock industry, and we couldn’t be happier to announce Matt’s coming onboard.” Madsen continued, “Matt’s been a leader in the NGO community promoting precautionary, science-based fisheries management. We are excited to have him put his considerable talents to work at APA.”

Tinning brings over a decade’s worth of experience in the e-NGO community to his new position. Prior to his work with environmental non-profits, the Australian-born Tinning served as a Liaison Officer at the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC. He also worked on Capitol Hill on the staff of former New Mexico Senator Jeff Bingaman.

Gulf Council recommends new pilots to test state management of recreational red snapper fishing

February 6, 2018 — The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has recommended that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) approve pilots for all five Gulf States to test state management of recreational fishing for red snapper. The Council’s approval of the pilots, known as Exempted Fishing Permits or EFPs, came with the caveat that the decision by some states to include their federal charter/for-hire vessels (and the corresponding quota allocations that are associated with them) not result in shrinking the federal charter season for the rest of the states.

The following is a statement from Matt Tinning, Senior Director of Environmental Defense Fund’s US Oceans Program:

“EDF has long called for innovations in the way we manage recreational fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, and we applaud those who are considering new approaches. We support this two-year opportunity for the states to show that they can manage their private red snapper anglers under the conservation tenets of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

“It is important that federal charter boats who do not wish to participate are treated fairly. These captains have worked for years to stabilize their seasons and are now close to finishing development of new federal fishery management plans.

Read the full story at the Orlando Political Observer

 

Red snapper measures advance in Congress

December 14, 2017 — Measures that will impact how much red snapper recreational fishermen will be able to catch in the Gulf of Mexico advanced today in Congress.

Proponents, including recreational fishing groups and Louisiana lawmakers, say the two bills approved by the House Natural Resources Committee would eliminate overly restrictive catch limits and unnecessarily short seasons for red snapper. The measures would give Gulf states more authority to regulate the popular species off their coasts.

Environmental and conservation groups counter that the measures will hamper efforts to help red snapper rebound from years of severe overfishing.

U.S. Rep. Garrett Graves, R-Baton Rouge, whose district includes northern Terrebonne and Lafourche, sponsored one of the bills and helped craft the other.

“As the stock has rebuilt, recreational anglers have unfairly seen fewer and fewer fishing days,” Graves said in introducing the Red Snapper Act of 2017 this summer. “Something has to change. It is time to replace the status quo with a management system that more accurately reflects today’s red snapper private recreational fishery.”

Read the full story at the Daily Comet

 

EDF on AL.com Article: We’re Proud of Our Work to Reform Fisheries

October 7, 2016 — The following was released by the Environmental Defense Fund in response to an earlier article published at Al.com:

A lengthy article published this week on AL.com seriously misrepresents the work of Environmental Defense Fund to advance fishery management reforms. Matt Tinning, Senior Director U.S. Oceans Program, released the following response:

“For the second time this year, AL.com has published a sloppy, inaccurate and inflammatory opinion piece about U.S. fisheries masquerading as investigative reporting. The writer’s primary focus is the Gulf of Mexico.

“AL.com, which gave EDF no opportunity to respond to many of the allegations leveled in their article, is failing its readers by presenting a distorted and factually-flawed picture of how Gulf fisheries are managed.

“Fisheries management is complex, and every decision involves difficult trade-offs based on a web of competing considerations about sustainability, access and societal impacts. In the Gulf of Mexico, EDF has worked with commercial fishermen, seafood buyers, recreational anglers, and government authorities for the last 15 years to help navigate these complex issues. We’ve done so with the singular focus of overcoming the profound management failures of the past and restoring fisheries to health for the benefit of the Gulf of Mexico’s coastal communities now and for future generations.

“We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve helped achieve. When we started, fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico were stuck under failing management that had perpetuated overfishing and reduced the population of Gulf red snapper to four percent of its historic level. Commercial fishermen worked in a derby fishery that forced them to fish in ever-shorter seasons. They often had to fish in dangerous weather and could not develop regular markets with buyers who needed more even supply.

“The new commercial management system known as an individual fishing quota (IFQ), which went on the water in 2007, has transformed the fishery. The initial allocation of quota was based on catch history, and a six percent consolidation cap was included to prevent concentration of quota in the hands of any one participant. The AL.com piece presents faulty numbers to make the false claim that some participants own much higher percentages. EDF believes that well designed fisheries management systems can prevent concentration. The claim that we favor ‘privatization’ of the resource is preposterous.

“Today, revenues for fishermen have doubled and the population of red snapper has tripled. In contrast with the pre-IFQ system, new entrants join the fishery every year, and many commercial fishermen are leading the way on innovations making the fishery even more sustainable. Restaurants, groceries stores and other seafood buyers are strong supporters of the commercial IFQ because it allows them to provide delicious, sustainable and local seafood (which they often struggled to obtain before 2007) to millions of customers.

“The Gulf of Mexico’s recreational anglers – many of whom had simply stopped targeting red snapper before 2007 because population decline had made them so hard to find – have seen their total allowable catch more than double. However, in contrast with commercial fishermen, they remain stuck under a failing management system that uses crude and outdated tools such as season limits. Many anglers are working to find better approaches. By using modern technologies like real-time tablet reporting to count every fish that they catch, headboats and charter captains can avoid the crippling economic consequences of short seasons and fish when customer demand is high.

“We’re proud to support these vital coastal small-businesses in their efforts to reform a failing system. And as private anglers consider what lessons they can learn from other wildlife management contexts (such as the rules embraced by hunters and freshwater fishermen) as an alternative to frustratingly short recreational seasons, we stand ready to assist.

“We look forward to being given space on AL.com’s website soon to respond in detail. Until then, we’ll proudly continue our work in the Gulf of Mexico and elsewhere to improve the health of the oceans and the livelihoods of America’s fishermen.”

See the full post here