Saving Seafood

ASMFC Begins Preparations for Horseshoe Crab Benchmark Stock Assessment

October 24, 2017 — ARLINGTON, Va. — The following was released by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission: 

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission will begin work on the 2018 benchmark stock assessment for horseshoe crab (Limulus polyphemus) starting this month.  The assessment will be used to evaluate the health of the stock and inform the management of this species.  The Commission’s stock assessment process and meetings are open to the public, with the exception of discussions of confidential data such as biomedical data, when the public will be asked to leave the room.  

 The Commission welcomes the submission of data sources that will improve the accuracy of the assessment.  This includes, but is not limited to, data on catch per unit effort, biological samples (sex, weight, prosomal width, life stage), life history information (growth, fecundity, natural mortality, sex ratio), stock structure (tagging data, genetics), bycatch and discard data, and biomedical data. For data sets to be considered, the data must be sent in the required format, with accompanying description of methods, to the Commission by December 20, 2017.  
 
The Data Workshop date and location have yet to be determined, but it is anticipated to take place during January or February 2018. This workshop will review all available data sources for horseshoe crab and identify data sets to be incorporated in the stock assessment.  For those interested in submitting data and/or attending the Horseshoe Crab Data Workshop (space is limited), please contact Dr. Kristen Anstead, Stock Assessment Scientist, at kanstead@asmfc.org or 703.842.0740.

MSC close to GSSI recognition as reliable certification scheme

November 14th, 2016 — The Marine Stewardship Council’s certification scheme has entered the public review period of the Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative’s multi-step process for recognizing the program as meeting the organization’s standards for governance, operations and fisheries management.

On Friday, 10 November, the GSSI launched a four-week public consultation period, during which time it will seek public input on its benchmark report for the MSC. Earlier this fall, independent experts and GSSI Benchmark Committee found the MSC to be in alignment with all GSSI Essential Components – standards by which the organization evaluates the reliability of seafood certification programs.

MSC entered into a GSSI review in June 2016, and the public consultation period is one of the last steps in the process of it obtaining GSSI validation. Following the public review, GSSI’s Benchmark Committee will provide its steering board with a final recommendation on recognition, whereupon, if the program obtains validation, all public comments and responses will be made publicly available.

The GSSI, launched in October 2015, seeks to “provide clarity of seafood certification worldwide through a multi-component review that is based upon the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries and the FAO Guidelines for seafood certification and eco-labeling.

Read the full story at Seafood Source