SEAFOODNEWS.COM [SCOM] — December 3, 2014 — The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is urging the Obama Administration to take strong action to help end global illegal fishing.
“As one of the largest markets on the planet for imported seafood – valued at almost $18 billion annually – the United States essentially helps drive illegal fishing that occurs around the world,” said WWF Vice President for Marine Policy Michele Kuruc. “If we can successfully close our borders to illegal products, we can change that course.”
The Presidential Task Force on Combatting Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Seafood Fraud is expected to present President Obama with a comprehensive set of recommendations outlining steps the federal government should take to keep illegal seafood from being imported into the US.
WWF provided 125,000 signatures in support of its position to the Task Force’s co-chairs, NOAA Administrator Kathryn Sullivan and Department of State Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Catherine Novelli.
WWF wants to see the Task Force to recommend new regulations that require:
– Catch Documentation: That all seafood sold in the United States be accompanied with basic and consistent information,
– Traceable to legal and verifiable sources: That this information should be traceable by regulators and supply chain actors from bait to plate, and
– Border Control: And that border measures should be designed to allow for informed decisions about product legality based on this information.
This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.