August 4, 2023 — With international tuna regulators headed for a major meeting in November, a coalition of seafood suppliers and environmental activists are supporting proposals for the first Pacific-wide harvest strategy to jointly manage albacore stocks.
The 101st Session of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) will be held Aug. 7-11 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The commission’s agenda includes an amendment to the North Pacific albacore harvest strategy, a measure for South Pacific albacore and proposals on electronic monitoring, FADs, and harvest control rules and a Vessel Monitoring System.
“Albacore tuna accounts for a significant chunk of the $40 billion-per-year global tuna market, and demand for this species is projected to grow. That’s why it is vital that fisheries managers work to ensure the sustainability of the albacore population,” wrote Esther Wozniak and Katy Hladki of the Pew Charitable Trusts’ international fisheries project in a recent commentary.
“Together, they can create the first Pacific-wide harvest strategy to jointly manage the stock. After years of research, evaluations and negotiations, managers are now poised to adopt a full harvest strategy this year,” they wrote.