Saving Seafood

Global shark deaths increasing despite finning bans, study shows

January 18, 2024 — Shark finning bans have had little effect on protecting global shark populations, according to new research. However, shark mortality decreased in pelagic fisheries, which suggests that regulatory measures in regional fisheries have had some positive impact.

In a new study published in Science, an international team of researchers analyzed shark catch data from 150 countries and the high seas between 2012 and 2019, and also conducted in-depth interviews with shark fishery experts to comprehend the fate of an estimated 1.1 billion sharks caught by fisheries around the world.

The research finds that shark mortality increased by an estimated 4% in coastal fisheries between 2012 and 2019. In contrast, regulated fisheries on the high seas, especially across the Atlantic and western Pacific, decreased by about 7%. However, the authors suggest these figures are likely underestimated due to the difficulty of tracking and collating fisheries data.

Over the study’s seven-year span, legislation to ban shark finning increased tenfold. For instance, in 2012, several nations, including Brazil, Taiwan and Venezuela, dictated that fishers must land sharks whole, without their fins cut off, in attempts to deter the practice of shark finning. Other nations banned shark fishing altogether, which is what Fiji did in 2013.

Read the full article at Mongabay

Everything You Know about Shark Conservation Is Wrong

May 25, 2022 — More people than ever before are aware of the shark conservation crisis and want to help, which is great news. However, many well-intentioned people often don’t know the true causes of—and solutions to—this crisis, resulting in what’s at best wasted effort, and at worst harming what they’re trying to support. This conservation dilemma has inspired the last decade of my research and public science engagement. It also inspired my new book, Why Sharks Matter: A Deep Dive with the World’s Most Misunderstood Predator, which synthesizes hundreds of research papers and reports to inform readers of the true threats to sharks and how we can begin to solve them. Only by following the evidence and seeking data-driven, sustainable solutions to overfishing can we save these fascinating and important creatures.

Many people believe that the largest or only threat to sharks is “shark finning”: the practice of catching sharks, harvesting their fins and discarding the carcasses at sea. But this isn’t the case and hasn’t been for decades. I’ve seen some online petitions calling for bans on shark finning within Florida waters get tens of thousands of signatures. Apparently neither the petition creators nor the many signatories are aware that we already banned shark finning across the United States almost 30 years ago. While supporters of these petitions say that they’re “raising awareness,” it does not help anyone or anything to share incorrect information about what the problems are or how to solve them. Such feel-good solutions do nothing while diverting energy, media coverage and funding away from solutions that might really help.

Sustainable fisheries for sharks absolutely exist and are a vital part of livelihoods and food security in developing nations in the Global South. Sharks have relatively few offspring relatively infrequently, which complicates fisheries management, but the principle is the same as for any sustainable fishery: perform scientific research to learn how many sharks are present, and allow fishermen to take some of them (but not so many that the population collapses). In fact, 90 percent of surveyed shark scientists and 78 percent of surveyed shark conservation advocates prefer sustainable shark fisheries to total bans on fishing for sharks and trade in shark products!

If you’ve never heard about sustainable shark fisheries before but have heard that the best way to save sharks is by banning the U.S. fin trade, it’s probably because, for reasons that aren’t very clear, such bans get much, much more media attention than science-based sustainable fisheries management. Many people are also influenced by provocative and misleading (to put it mildly) “documentaries” like 2021’s Seaspiracy.

Read the full story at Scientific American

Hai Trieu Food Earns Friend of The Sea Certification for Sustainable Wild-Caught Yellowfin Tuna

November 8, 2021 — Friend of the Sea, the global certification standard for products and services that respect and protect the marine environment, is pleased to announce the certification of Hai Trieu Food for sustainable fishing practices. Consequently, the company can display the Friend of the Sea eco-label on its products, highlighting its efforts to protect and preserve the environment.

Hai Trieu Food was established in 2006 in Vietnam and, after 13 years in business, has become one of the leading seafood companies in the country. With a seven vessels fleet, Hai Trieu Food specializes in processing and exporting wild-caught yellowfin tuna products with high-quality international standards.

Yellowfin tuna is one of Vietnam’s most important exports, surpassing a total annual value of more than 300 million dollars. However, as the national tuna industry grows, so does the need to protect the country’s magnificent marine biodiversity from the impact of unsustainable fishing practices.

Read the full story at Friends of the Sea

 

From Jaws to Shark Week: How Much Do You Know About Sharks? On Shark Awareness Day, Learn Why We Need to Protect Them

July 13, 2021 — The following was released by Friend of the Sea:

No other species from the animal kingdom has starred in so many Hollywood films, such as sharks (more than 180, to be precise). From Jaws to Megalodon and Sharknado, most of them picture sharks as brutal creatures. However, over the past decades, it’s humans who have cornered sharks, putting them under the threat of extinction.

Overfishing, shark finning, and bycatch are responsible for killing more than 100 million sharks a year. An alarming figure, especially considering some shark species have a slow reproduction cycle, taking a very long time for them to recover. According to the IUCN Red List, more than 300 shark and ray species are classified as endangered, including the famous white shark, the whale shark, and the hammerhead.

For this reason, on this year’s Shark Awareness Day, Friend of the Sea invites everyone to join the efforts to protect them, starting with getting the facts right.

DIVERSE AND INDISPENSABLE
There are more than 500 species of sharks in the ocean. They come in all sizes and colors. For example, a great white shark can reach up to 6 meters long. However, half of all shark species measure less than one-meter long. Some feed on plankton and tiny fish, while others prefer bigger prey, such as seals or sea lions.

Apex predator sharks play a crucial role in the ecosystem, helping maintain the balance in many ways. But, as much as we like to imagine, they’re not fond of hunting humans. Instead, sharks tend to attack people out of curiosity or because they feel threatened. In 2020, there were 57 confirmed unprovoked attacks worldwide, resulting in 10 deaths, according to an international database.

WHO’S THE PREDATOR?
It’s rather humans who have hunted down shark sin an unsustainable way, bringing the species to a critical point. A recent study showed that oceanic populations of sharks and rays have shrunk by 71%, mainly because of overfishing.

Fisheries target sharks especially for their fins which are considered a delicacy in certain countries. The practice of shark finning is particularly cruel, and though it has been banned in several countries, it persists. It implies cutting fins off live sharks and then throwing them wounded to the ocean, where they die painfully from suffocation, blood loss, or eaten by other predators.

There is also a market for shark meat, with European countries representing the most significant share. In addition to being targeted for their fins and meat, sharks often end up in fishing nets as incidental bycatch.

BE A FRIEND OF THE SHARKS
So, on this 14th of July, instead of playing a shark film, learn with Friend of the Sea how we can protect sharks.

Friend of the Sea, a project from the World Sustainability Organization, promotes fisheries practices responsible with sharks, necessary trade regulations for vulnerable shark species, responsible consumption, and the creation of protected areas.

Additionally, Friend of the Sea has instated several initiatives to support shark conservation efforts, such as:

On Shark Awareness Day, become a friend of the sharks and help us save these magnificent creatures.

The marine ecosystem will thank you.

US Senate passes Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act

June 9, 2021 — The U.S. Senate has passed the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act (SFSEA), moving a commercial ban on the trade of shark fins and products containing shark fins closer to reality.

The U.S. Senate ended up passing the bill on 8 June as part of a broader legislative package – the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act. That bill will now head down to the U.S. House, where both chambers will negotiate the final form of the package.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Marco Rubio Brings Back the Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act

April 30, 2021 — U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., has brought back his proposal for the U.S. Commerce Department to increase regulation on the international shark trade.

Rubio has been pushing the “Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act” since 2018 and he reintroduced it this week.

The bill “would require any country that seeks to export shark, ray, and skate to the US to first demonstrate it has a system of science-based management to prevent overfishing and a prohibition on the practice of shark finning” and ensure other nations “must also receive certification from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that its fisheries management policies are on par with US practices” and modifies the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act.

U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., is co-sponsoring the bill. So are U.S. Sens. Mike Braun, R-Ind., and Bill Cassidy, R-La.

Read the full story at Florida Daily

Misinformation, polarization impeding environmental protection efforts

March 5, 2021 — A group of researchers, spanning six universities and three continents, are sounding the alarm on a topic not often discussed in the context of conservation—misinformation.

In a recent study published in FACETS, the team, including Dr. Adam Ford, Canada Research Chair in Wildlife Restoration Ecology, and Dr. Clayton Lamb, Liber Ero Fellow, both based in the Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science, explain how the actions of some scientists,  and the public are eroding efforts to conserve biodiversity.

“Outcomes, not intentions, should be the basis for how we view success in conservation,” says Dr. Ford.

Dr. Lamb points to other cases including mass petitions against shark finning in Florida, although the practice was previously banned there; planting a species of milkweed in an attempt to save monarch butterflies, only to ultimately harm them; and closer to home, the sharing of misinformation in regards to the British Columbia grizzly bear hunt.

Read the full story at PHYS.org

MSC urged to raise the bar on shark-finning

February 17, 2021 — A new report by a cadre of scientists and members of environmental NGOs is calling on the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) to take further action to combat the practice of shark-finning.

The report, which analyzed the MSC’s policies relating to shark-finning, asserts that the organization should adopt a “fins naturally attached” (FNA) policy in order to curtail – and hopefully eliminate – shark-finning. The council is failing its zero-tolerance policy on shark-finning, a press release from the organizations behind the report said.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Corrected: Newest ISSF Participating Tuna Company Compliance Report Shows 99.4 percent Conformance with ISSF Conservation Measures

November 6, 2020 — The following was released by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation:

The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) has released its fifth annual Update to ISSF Conservation Measures & Commitments Compliance Report, which shows a conformance rate of 99.4 percent by 25 ISSF participating companies with all 27 ISSF conservation measures in effect as of October 1, 2019.

As part of its commitment to foster transparency and accountability in the fishing industry, ISSF engages third-party auditor MRAG Americas to assess ISSF participating seafood companies’ compliance with ISSF conservation measures according to a rigorous audit protocol.

The November 2020 report is based on updates to the initial annual audit results published in April 2020, wherein some companies had “minor” or “major” non-conformances with conservation measures in the prior year:

  • The April 2020 annual report showed that one company had four major non-conformances, and two companies had one minor non-conformance each.
  • There were no other instances of major non-conformance reported in 2020.

MRAG Americas defines a minor non-conformance as: “Company does not fully comply with a particular conservation measure or commitment, but this does not compromise the integrity of ISSF initiatives.”

The rate of full conformance for each period since participating-company compliance reporting began is reflected below:

“Since 2015, we’ve seen consistent growth in the conformance rate of our participating companies with ISSF conservation measures, regularly exceeding 90 percent in full rate of conformance and achieving nearly 100 percent in most recent years,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson. “The compliance and audit process helps ISSF hold industry participants to a high standard with reliable transparency. The world’s leading seafood companies are driven to make sustainability a central part of how they do business.”

The Update to ISSF Conservation Measures & Commitments Compliance Report is published each November to track ISSF participating companies’ progress in conforming with ISSF conservation measures like these:

In addition to the summary compliance reports published in April and November, MRAG Americas issues yearly individual ISSF participating company reports that detail each company’s compliance with all ISSF conservation measures. These include “update” reports, published throughout the year, that explain how individual companies have remediated any non-conformance on the conservation measures.

More Information about ISSF Conservation Measures & Compliance

For long-term tuna sustainability, tuna companies worldwide choose to participate with ISSF, follow responsible fishing practices, and implement science-based conservation measures. From bycatch mitigation to product traceability, ISSF participating companies have committed to conforming to a set of conservation measures and other commitments designed to drive positive change — and to do so transparently through third-party audits.

View ISSF Conservation Measures

View ISSA Compliance Policy

Eastern Pacific is a major supply chain for illegal shark fin trade, researchers find

October 14, 2020 — New research reveals the Eastern Pacific is a particular hotspot for the shark fin trade—and a danger zone for an endangered species fighting for survival.

Florida International University (FIU) postdoctoral researcher Diego Cardeñosa and Demian Chapman, an associate professor of biological sciences and marine scientist in the Institute of Environment, collaborated with scientists in Hong Kong to track and monitor the global shark fin trade using DNA testing.

They tested fins from endangered pelagic thresher sharks (Alopias pelagicus)—a species commonly found in the fin trade. Almost 85 percent of fins sampled from retail markets in Hong Kong and China were genetically traced back to sharks caught in the Eastern Pacific. It’s not the first time the scientists have linked fins from endangered sharks to this specific area.

“The findings weren’t surprising, because earlier this year we discovered the majority of fins from endangered scalloped hammerhead sharks also originated from the Eastern Pacific,” Cardeñosa said. “This is a region with poor fisheries management and poor capacity to enforce international regulations.”

Read the full story at PHYS.org