Cook Islands to Work With Other Pacific Island Nations to Sustainably Use Fisheries

The South Pacific Group (SPG) – comprising the Cook Islands, Fiji, Niue, Samoa, Tonga, and Vanuatu – have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work together in managing and maximising the benefits of oceanic fishery resources.

“SPG’s immediate area of interest is the management of the southern longline fishery, with a particular focus on South Pacific albacore tuna,” the SPG said in a statement.

“This fishery stretches across the exclusive economic zones of SPG members, who work with the broader Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) membership on proposals to improve the management of albacore within the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).” Continue reading here (Source: Cook Islands News).

FMI: Seafood Is Well-Situated in US Retail, Despite Continuing Inflation Woes

Inflation and other economic headwinds are continuing to impact the U.S. grocery industry, but overall, products like seafood are in a good position to navigate the challenges in the marketplace, according to executives from FMI – The Food Industry Association.

In a 12 July webinar, FMI executives reviewed findings from the organization’s new report, “The Food Retailing Industry Speaks 2023,” which included survey responses from 100 food retail and wholesale companies representing 39,000 stores.

The report found that food inflation is down significantly since last August, when it peaked at 13.5 percent, but retailers, suppliers, and consumers continue to feel the impact from the past year’s inflationary and economic pressures. Continue reading here (Source: SeafoodSource).

Tuna Vessel Seized After Abandoning Net in Natural Protected Area off Baja California Sur

A tuna vessel responsible for environmental damage off the coast of Baja California Sur has been seized. The seizure was made after federal authorities verified the death of numerous marine life due to an abandoned fishing net.

The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office in Baja California Sur began the investigation after a legal complaint was filed by the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection in response to a report of the abandoned net in a Natural Protected Area.

The net was left abaondoned in the lower part of Las Animas by the tuna boat after it became hung up in rocks. The government of Mexico verified the report using divers who located the net and found dead fish, turtles and marine mammals that had been caught in the net. Continue reading here (Source: Riviera Maya News).

Marine Protection Does Not Affect Fish Catches in Mexico

Marine protected areas are the oceanic versions of national parks: In the most stringently protected regions, fishing and other extractive activities are banned. Some critics in the fishing industry have long argued that such restrictions negatively affect fishers by reducing catches and forcing mariners to travel longer distances to fish. However, researchers have now analyzed maritime data to show that’s not true, at least for North America’s largest marine protected area. Their results were published in Science Advances. Continue reading here (Source: EOS).

EU Tightens the Net on Illegal Fishing with Restructuring of Fisheries Control Rules

On 27 June, five years after the European Commission’s initial proposal to modernize the European Union fisheries control system, a preliminary agreement on new regulation received approval from the European Parliament’s Fisheries Committee.

The 20-8 vote advances a planned overhaul of E.U. fisheries control rules with the goal of strengthening measures to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, with compulsory measures introduced on electronic tracking and traceability that aim to boost supply chain transparency, which have been long-sought goals of marine-focused environmental NGOs. Continue reading here (Source: SeafoodSource).

Tonga Joins Pacific Group Signing MOU On Fisheries

The annual Forum Fisheries Committee Ministerial 20 (FFCMIN20) and the Regional Fisheries Ministers Meeting 4 (RFMM4) was held in Majuro, Marshall Islands, from 3-6 July.

A one-day meeting of the Forum Fisheries Committee (FFC127) was held before the ministerial meetings, where members combined proposals and matters to be considered by ministers at the FFCMIN20 and the RFMM4 and their retreat on the final day of the meeting.

This year’s FFCMIN20 focused on areas to improve the management and development of the tuna fisheries resources and the fisheries waters of its members. Continue reading here (Source: Matangi Tonga Online).

Ocean Outcomes, Fue Shin FIP Designed to Combat Taiwanese Longline Tuna IUU Fishing

Ocean Outcomes, a Portland, Oregon, U.S.A.-based nonprofit, recently established a fisheries improvement project (FIP) with Taiwan-based Fue Shin Fishery (FSF) that aims to improve environmental and labor standards on 10 longline tuna vessels in the Indian Ocean.

The wider goal of the FIP is “to improve fishery management strategies, environmental oversight, fishing practices, and crew welfare” on the 10 vessels, which net an annual tuna catch of 1,600 metric tons (MT) according to Ocean Outcomes. Continue reading here (Source: SeafoodSource).