Saving Seafood

Summary of Action Items for the 181st Meeting of the WPRFMC

February 7, 2020 — The following was released by the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council:

The 181st meeting of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council will convene March 10-12, 2020, at the Laniakea YWCA, Fuller Hall, Honolulu, Hawai’i. The Council will consider and may take action on the issues summarized below, including any public comments on them. Click here for a complete PDF version of the 181st Action Item Summary Memo.

  1. Specifying Annual Catch Limits for the Mariana Archipelago Bottomfish Fishery
  2. Options Paper to Amend the Bottomfish Management Unit Species in American Samoa and the Mariana Archipelago
  3. US Territory Longline Bigeye Catch/Allocation Limits
  4. Marine Conservation Plans for Guam, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Pacific Remote Island Areas/Hawai’i

Written public comments should be received by the Council’s executive director by 5 p.m. (Hawai’i time), Thursday, March 5, 2020, by postal mail, fax or email as indicated below. After March 5, it is the submitter’s responsibility to provide at least 40 copies of the written comment to Council staff at the Council meeting.

Read the full release here

National-level fishery improvement project launched in Indonesia

January 29, 2020 — The following was released by the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership:

Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) is pleased to announce the official launching of an industry-led national-level fishery improvement project (FIP) covering longline tuna in Indonesia. The FIP is listed on the Fishery Progress website as the Indonesia Indian Ocean and Western Central Pacific Ocean tuna – longline FIP.

The comprehensive FIP is being implemented by the Indonesia Longline Tuna Association (ATLI). The scope of the FIP includes:

  • Albacore, yellowfin, and bigeye longline fisheries in the Indian Ocean, within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Indonesia and international waters
  • Yellowfin and bigeye longline fisheries in the Western Central Pacific Ocean, within the archipelagic waters and EEZ, as well as on the high seas.

A total of 14 companies, consisting of fishing companies and processors and ATLI, signed a letter of commitment at the recent FIP launch meeting, which took place at the ATLI Secretariat in Benoa Harbour, Bali, Indonesia, on January 23, 2020. The launch was also attended by the navy commander of Bali Province, representatives from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, the quarantine office of Bali, and ATLI members.

The FIP’s goals include four key areas of focus:

  • Improve data collection on catch and bycatch and improve fishing practices
  • Increase onboard observer coverage in the fleet
  • Strengthen the decision-making process for research, monitoring, and evaluations of the fishery
  • Achieve MSC certification.

”Indonesia is a leading producer of tuna, and implementing this national-level FIP, involving more than 250 longline vessels, can make a global impact in increasing the proportion of  shelf-stable and fresh and frozen tuna from well-managed sources,” said Dessy Anggraeni, director of SFP’s Indonesia FIP work.

Members of the Global Fresh and Frozen Tuna Supply Chain Roundtable (SR) are lending their support to the project and 13 SR members have signed a letter expressing their support for development of this FIP.

Dwi Agus Siswa Putra, chairman of ATLI, said, “We are committed to implement the improvement actions listed in the workplan of the longline tuna fishery improvement project, and hope to move towards MSC certification. Furthermore, we strive to make the Indonesia longline tuna regain its position as a prominent product from Indonesia, that is sustainable and that will make all of us proud.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: You can read more about the FIP on the Fishery Progress website here.

Proposed settlement from Chicken of the Sea in class-action suit rejected by judge

January 27, 2020 — A proposed settlement between a class of commercial food-preparers and Chicken of the Sea, one of the three U.S. canned tuna companies found to have conspired to fix the prices of their products, has been rejected by the judge overhearing the case.

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California Judge Janis L. Sammartino rejected a payment of USD 6.5 million (EUR 5.9 million), saying it is not clear the settlement provides enough money to those harmed by the price-fixing.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Judge approves FCF’s purchase of Bumble Bee Foods

January 24, 2020 — U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Laurie Silverstein has approved Fong Chun Formosa (FCF) Fishery Company’s stalking-horse bid for Bumble Bee Foods, giving the Kaohsiung, Taiwan-based tuna supplier ownership and control over the iconic American brand.

In November 2019, FCF entered a stalking-horse bid for Bumble Bee, which had filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. state of Delaware. FCF has long been one of Bumble Bee’s top suppliers of albacore, skipjack, yellowfin, and bigeye tuna.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

New Report Reveals Economic Impact of Recreational Atlantic Highly Migratory Species Fisheries

January 22, 2020 — The following was released by NOAA Fisheries:

In November, NOAA Fisheries released the findings of two studies on the economic impact of recreational fisheries targeting Atlantic highly migratory species. When combined with other NOAA Fisheries research, these reveal that HMS recreational fishing contributes an estimated $510 million to the U.S. economy each year.

Atlantic tunas, sharks, billfish, and swordfish—together known as HMS—are popular targets for anglers. In 2018, we issued more than 20,000 HMS angling permits to fishermen living across the country. There were also more than 200 tournaments targeting Atlantic HMS that year.

To understand how this robust industry impacts our national economy, we asked 1,806 anglers to break down their fishing trip expenses. We also collected cost and earnings information from 73 tournament operators and spoke with 104 tournament fishing teams. Both surveys were conducted in 2016.

Anglers reported spending an average of $682 for a day of fishing for Atlantic HMS outside a tournament. Daily expenses were highest in the Gulf of Mexico. We estimate they spent $300 more on average there than in New England. Regardless of where they fished, though, anglers say boat fuel was their largest expense. Bait costs came in as a distant second, followed closely by groceries.

Read the full release here

FCF only bidder for Bumble Bee, with judge to decide if sale moves forward

January 21, 2020 — Taiwan-based Fong Chun Formosa (FCF) Fishery Company is in line to purchase Bumble Bee Foods, after an auction for Bumble Bee scheduled for 21 January was canceled due to a lack of bidders.

FCF will pay between USD 926.6 million and USD 930.6 million (EUR 835.3 million and 838.9 million) for Bumble Bee, according to court documents. It will also take on nearly all Bumble Bee’s liabilities, including USD 17 million (EUR 15.3 million) still due under the DOJ Agreement, and the offer of future employment for their employees.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

PNA buys “revolutionary” fisheries information management system

January 14, 2020 — Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA), in late November 2019, completed the purchase of a fisheries information management system (FIMS) it says will aid in the effective management of fisheries in the region’s waters.

In 2018, the PNA said the FIMS “revolutionized management” of the tuna fishery. The PNA used the system for two years, before finally deciding to buy the system outright.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Bumble Bee hoping to pay executive bonuses, over objections of creditors

January 10, 2020 — The creditors of Bumble Bee Foods, which filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2019, have asked the judge overseeing the case to prevent the company from paying year-end bonuses to some of its employees.

Bumble Bee is hoping to pay 37 of its employees enrolled in its Key Employee Incentive Program (KEIP) – created after the company filed for bankruptcy – between USD 1.3 million and USD 3.2 million (EUR 1.16 million and EUR 2.88 million) as a performance bonus for helping the company maintain cash flow during its difficult past few months.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

‘Tuna King’ buys 608-pound fish for $1.8 million at Sunday auction in Japan

January 7, 2020 — One fish, two fish, red fish… million-dollar tuna fish.

Japanese businessman Kiyoshi Kimura, who has dubbed himself the “Tuna King,” purchased a 608-pound fish for $1.8 million at a Sunday auction.

The blue fin fetched the second-highest price in history at auction Sunday, Japanese Broadcasting Corporation NHK reported.

Caught in Aomori, a political region of Japan, the giant fish sold for 193 million yen — equivalent to nearly $1.8 million.

“Yes, this is expensive, isn’t it? I want our customers to eat very tasty ones this year, too,” Kimura said after the auction, as reported by Agence France-Presse.

Read the full story at the New York Daily News

Report indicates key tuna stocks in Western and Central Pacific Ocean are healthy

December 12, 2019 — Pacific bigeye, yellowfin, albacore, and skipjack tuna are all reported to be in healthy condition, according to a 2018 stock assessment announced this week during the 16th Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) meeting in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.

The Pacific Community’s (SPC) stock assessment report stated that the estimate of the total tuna catch in the WCPFC Convention Area for 2018 is 2,790,859 metric tons (MT), which represents 81 percent of the total Pacific Ocean catch of 3,443,174 MT, and 54 percent of the global tuna catch, which was 5,172,543 MT.

Read the full story at Seafood Source