April 21, 2016 — Over the course of 18 months, Associated Press journalists located men held in cages, tracked ships and stalked refrigerated trucks to expose the abusive practices of the fishing industry in Southeast Asia. The reporters’ dogged effort led to the release of more than 2,000 slaves and traced the seafood they caught to supermarkets and pet food providers across the U.S. For this investigation, AP has won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
Reducing Bycatch in Shrimp Trawlers: Could Efforts in North Carolina Provide a Solution?
April 5, 2016 — Bycatch is a huge problem for the US shrimp industry, which is under pressure to reduce the unintended entrapment of marine species. Devices that deflect turtles and help fish avoid or escape the nets have been necessary for years, and federal law requires nets to be fitted with devices that reduce bycatch by 30 per cent but despite this, the amount of bycatch is still about three times that of the targeted shrimp (North Carolina Wildlife Federation).
A report released by the North Carolina Wildlife Federation described the amount of bycatch in the state as being unsustainably high and unacceptable at about three times that of the targeted shrimp.
But North Carolina’s shrimp industry is huge — fishermen harvested 14.1 million US dollars worth of shrimp in 2014, and nearly 200 commercial fishermen currently work in the industry.
In light of the bycatch, North Carolina is now taking steps to find a solution. In 2015 the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission established a group of fishermen, net makers, researchers, fish dealers and other stakeholders who gather and evaluate information on the effectiveness of various bycatch reduction devices or BRDs.
Among those tested are the composite panel with spooker cones (a cylindrical shaped device used to spook or scare fish to seek escape), additional escape openings called fisheyes and tailbags, also known as codends, the portion of the net that holds the shrimp catch.
LIVE FROM SENA: Plenty of Fish in the Sea
March 9, 2016 — In the immediate wake of the 2016 Seafood Expo North America, the overwhelming impression is of bounty. As always, there was a plethora of product to sample, with plenty of standout items. Traversing the show floor at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center this week, Progressive Grocer noted even more breaded/crusted offerings than in past years, with shrimp, crab, clams, calamari, oysters, catfish, cod, tilapia, grouper, haddock and rainbow trout all getting the crunchy treatment, some in the form of bite-sized chunks. Also observed: a continuing trend towards zesty spices, sauces and marinades, with Southwestern flavors – as evidenced by the fish tacos served up by Miramar, Fla.-based Regal Springs, which donated 5 pounds of tilapia for every taco sampled to hunger relief nonprofit SeaShare – and sriracha particularly prevalent.
At the National Fish & Seafood booth, Nancy Peterson, VP of marketing at the Gloucester, Mass.-based company, was particularly excited about the company’s newest product introduction under its Matlaw’s brand: the seven-SKU Big Bag Value line, which Peterson noted offers on-trend flavor, variety and affordable price in clear, super-sized bilingual (English and Spanish) packaging enabling customers to see just what they’re purchasing. Among the products in the convenient frozen line are Shrimp Jalapeño Mac & Cheese Bites, leveraging consumer interest in breaded, bite-sized, spicy items. National Fish & Seafood is considering adding a lobster option to the line, according to Peterson, who adds that the company gets many of its ideas for retail products from items developed for foodservice. “That’s worked very well for us,” she asserted.
Announcing 2016 Fishing Opportunities in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) Regulatory Area
March 1, 2016 — We are announcing 2016 fishing opportunities in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) Regulatory Area for U.S. fishing vessels.
Read the announcement as filed in the Federal Register.
Background
The United States is a Contracting Party to the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization or NAFO. NAFO is an intergovernmental fisheries science and management body whose convention on Northwest Atlantic Fisheries applies to most fishery resources in international waters of the Northwest Atlantic.
NAFO’s Fisheries Commission is responsible for the management and conservation of the fishery resources in its Regulatory Area.
What NAFO fishing opportunities are available to U.S. fishing vessels?
NAFO manages Atlantic cod, yellowtail and witch flounders, Acadian redfish, American plaice, Greenland halibut, white hake, capelin, shrimp, skates, and Illex squid. NAFO maintains conservation measures for these species (in its Regulatory Area), including catch limits that are allocated among NAFO Contracting Parties.
Who can apply for these fishing opportunities?
Any U.S. fishing interests (e.g., vessel owners, processors, agents, others).
How do I apply?
Send an expression of interest in writing to:
John K. Bullard
U.S. Commissioner to NAFO
NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office
55 Great Republic Drive
Gloucester, MA 01930
phone: 978-281-9315
For more information, read the Federal Register announcement, visit the NAFO website, or contact:
Michael Ruccio
NMFS Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office
55 Great Republic Drive
Gloucester, MA 01930
phone: 978-281-9104
fax: 978-281-9135
The deadline is March 15.
Slave Labor on the High Seas
February 20, 2016 — Shocking revelations about the international fishing industry’s reliance on slave labor have caused many people to question the origin of the shrimp or tuna they eat. The disclosures have also led the United States to take some important new steps to clamp down on the use of indentured workers and discourage other unlawful activities on the high seas.
President Obama is expected to sign legislation that effectively bans American imports of fish caught by forced labor in Southeast Asia. The bill, passed by Congress this month, would close a loophole in the Tariff Act of 1930 that prohibits imports made by convicts or forced labor but exempts such goods if American domestic production could not meet demand. Now that is expected to end. The president recently signed an agreement allowing officials to deny port services to foreign vessels suspected of illegal fishing.
In another useful move, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration this month said it would improve how seafood is tracked from catch to market by imposing new reporting requirements on American importers, who purchase from overseas sources 90 percent of the seafood that humans and pets consume in the United States. These new requirements would affect 16 species, including cod, snapper and some tuna, and are intended to protect species that are overfished or at risk of being overfished by cracking down on illegally caught or mislabeled fish.
Read the full editorial at The New York Times
To Combat Illegal Fishing, Feds Propose Seafood Traceability Program
February 15, 2016 — The National Marine Fisheries Service is proposing a new program meant to improve record keeping about seafood imported to the United States.
In early February, the agency announced a new traceability plan that’s meant to help combat illegal fishing and seafood fraud. NMFS Director of Office of International Affairs and Seafood Inspections John Henderschedt said the federal government wants a better record of who is catching seafood and where it’s landed before it shows up in U.S. stores.
The proposed program would apply to about 13 types of fish, including Pacific cod, red king crab, shrimp, sea cucumber and others. Importers would be required to track where it was caught, who caught it, the type of gear that was used and where it was landed.
“In instances where the data is absent, or instances where there are other issues with the quality or the completeness of the data, we would then move to an investigation stage,” Henderschedt said. “As this international trade data system develops and once we’ve been able to identify what the key chain of custody data elements are, we anticipate establishing additional reporting elements associated with the chain of custody, but I’ll reiterate that for now, those are a record-keeping requirement.”
Henderschedt said that NMFS already has that information for domestic seafood, so fishermen and processors here won’t be asked to do anything differently. But it would add information that isn’t tracked right now for international imports.
“We do not have laws that allow us to gather the data to ensure that we can carefully examine the legality of catch and the chain of custody of that product as it makes its way to the U.S.,” he said.
Devices to Keep Fish Out of North Carolina Shrimp Nets Prove Surprisingly Effective
February 15, 2016 — Shrimpers and biologists surprised the experts last summer by using modified trawl nets that drastically reduced the amount of popular fish caught and discarded.
The nets were fitted with a variety of devices beyond what is already required, including “spooker cones” that scare away fish before they enter the net, additional escape openings called fisheyes, and tailbags with larger mesh. The tailbag is where the catch collects at the end of the net.
The test trawls gathered 77 tons of fish and shrimp. The most effective test nets were fitted with two fisheyes and a tailbag with a mesh width of 1 7/8 inches. That net caught 211 pounds of shrimp and 183 pounds of fish.
Brown called that a stunning result because bycatch is typically triple the amount of shrimp. Some estimates put bycatch at four to five times the shrimp haul.
The experimental net produced another surprise: It caught more shrimp than the control net, which had no bycatch reduction devices.
Biologists and fishermen were amazed how effective the test devices were, said Kevin Brown, a gear development biologist with the Division of Marine Fisheries.
“I am pleasantly shocked at where we are,” he said.
The shrimping industry is under pressure to reduce bycatch, the unintended entrapment of highly regarded marine species, including sea turtles. The trawl nets are pulled behind the boat near the bottom of the sound.
Devices that deflect turtles and help fish avoid or escape the nets have been required for years, but the amount of bycatch is still about three times that of the targeted seafood of shrimp. Typically, the bycatch fish are juveniles not fit for market and are discarded overboard.
Maine Coldwater Shrimp Research Survey Harvests Fall Short of Predictions
February 10, 2016 — Maine shrimp lovers are hoping for the best this winter. With the shrimp population in decline over the past few years, and the Gulf of Maine shrimp fishery being closed for the third season in a row to shrimp trappers and trawlers, there won’t be much Maine shrimp in markets, restaurants or on dinner tables again this year.
But thanks to a study being conducted by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) and the states of Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts, four trawlers and two trappers have been selected to collect samples of northern shrimp from the Gulf of Maine.
Marine biologists will use the data to determine the timing of the egg hatch, and the size, gender and developmental stage of the shrimp, according to biologist Margaret Hunter of the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR). A total catch of 48,500 pounds from the Gulf of Maine is being allowed. Any shrimp not used in the study may be sold by the fishermen.
Each participating trawler is required to conduct five research trips in one region, and is being compensated $500 per trip. Each would be allowed to sell up to 1,800 pounds of shrimp per trip.
The two shrimp-trapping vessels are required to continue hauling until the shrimp have hatched off all their eggs. Each is allowed 40 traps, and may haul as often as necessary during the project, with a 600-pound weekly catch limit. The shrimp may be sold, but there will be no other compensation for the trappers.
Despite the best efforts of local trapper Bill Sherburne, as of yet, the shrimp catch has not met his expectations.
As of Feb. 1, Sherburne said he hadn’t done as well as he had hoped. “It makes a difference where the traps are placed. They don’t come close to shore until the water cools down.”
Feds fight fish fraud with new recordkeeping rules
February 8, 2016 — The National Marine Fisheries Service announced last week that it is implementing a new tracking program for seafood imports to help combat illegal fishing and seafood fraud.
Importers will have to track where fish were caught, the type of gear used and where it was landed.
Director of the Office of International Affairs and Seafood Inspections John Henderschedt said the federal government wants a better record of who is catching seafood and where it’s landed before it shows up in U.S. stores.
“We do not have laws that allow us to gather the data to ensure that we can carefully examine the legality of catch and the chain of custody of that product as it makes its way to the U.S.,” Henderschedt said.
The proposed program applies to about 13 different types of fish, including Pacific cod, red king crab, shrimp, sea cucumber and others. Eventually, Henderschedt said it could be expanded to more species.
Henderschedt said NMFS already has that information for domestic seafood, so fishermen and processors here won’t be asked to do anything differently. For now, consumers won’t have the new information about imported seafood.
Electronic Reporting and Red Snapper Top Gulf Council Agenda
February 4, 2016 — The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council recently met in Orange Beach, AL, home to miles and miles of sugar-white sand beaches, as well the largest charter-for-hire recreational fishing fleet in the U.S. equipped with electronic data collection, to discuss numerous fishery issues, including electronic reporting for for-hire vessels, regional management for recreational red snapper, and the shrimp permit moratorium.
Regional Management of Recreational Red Snapper, or Reef Fish Amendment 39, was at the top of the agenda for the 17 voting members of the Council which is comprised of the directors of the five Gulf state marine resource management agencies, or their designees, and 11 members nominated by the state governors and appointed by the Secretary of Commerce. Amendment 39 would affect recreational fishing for red snapper in federal and state waters.
Amendment 39 was developed to divide the recreational red snapper quota among regions to allow region-specific management measures. After reviewing the Amendment and public hearing summaries, the Gulf states’ marine resource directors rejected the amendment leading the Council to postpone further discussion while they explore other options for recreational red snapper management.
Both charter-for-hire and commercial representatives sitting on the Council fought for the private recreational sector to establish a management plans to no avail.
“It is sad to see the five Gulf State directors fail to reach an agreement with each other and foster a real solution for private recreational anglers,” said Gulf Seafood Institute (GSI) member Captain Troy Frady of Distraction Charters in Orange Beach. “If this amendment had not been abandoned, it would have created a path to provide much needed relief for private recreational angler’s short federal fishing season. Now, there is nothing meaningful in the works that is being done for recreational fishermen.”
Commercial fisherman and GSI Florida Board member David Krebs, president of Ariel Seafood, said that he also was disappointed in the Council and that the recreational representatives did not pursue working on the amendment to protect the recreational interests.
“We are once again seeing an assault on the commercial IFQ’s (Individual Fishing Quotas) filled with lies and mistruths,” he said. We are hoping the Council will appoint a recreational advisory panel to work through the details to give recreational fishermen some relief in flexibility and sustainability.”
Read the full story at Gulf Seafood Institute
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