Saving Seafood

IOTC blacklists tuna fleet with record of IUU fishing

May 27, 2022 — The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) has blacklisted a fleet of tuna-fishing vessels after an Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) investigation revealed it has a previous record of engaging in illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

The decision by the IOTC, made at its 26th session meeting in the Seychelles, was based on the investigation by the EJF that culminated in the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna banning the vessels in December 2021. Later, the vessels – the Israr 1, 2 and 3 – were dropped by insurers in March 2022.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

IOTC decisions on yellowfin, skipjack tuna criticized as falling short of sustainability goals

May 24, 2022 — The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC), which held its annual meeting from 16 to 20 May, 2022, is once again being criticized by ocean-focused non-governmental organizations, which are claiming it failed to take sufficient action to conserve tuna stocks.

Environmental organizations have been pressuring the IOTC to take action on issues threatening the sustainability of skipjack and yellowfin tuna stocks in the Indian Ocean for years, arguing both species are being fished at rates above the commission’s own scientific advice. The IOTC agreed to reduce the total allowable catch (TAC) for yellowfin in 2021 after months of pressure from NGOs, but that resolution was also criticized after multiple contracting countries objected to the adoption of the new TAC.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

IOTC passes resolution tightening at-sea tuna transshipment rules

May 23, 2022 — The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) has passed a resolution aiming to improve the rules and oversight procedures on transshipment of tuna in the Indian Ocean.

The resolution, the text of which was slightly amended at the request of the Indonesian and Japanese delegations, was passed at the IOTC’s 26th session and associated meetings, held in Victoria, Seychelles, from 16 to 20 May. According to the commission, it is one step forward in combating illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing in the region.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Taiwanese fishing groups complain NGOs are ignoring industry efforts, endangering future progress

April 28, 2022 — Taiwanese fishing representatives have issued a joint statement to protest the treatment they have received from non-governmental organizations including the Seafood Working Group and Greenpeace.

The Taiwan Deepsea Tuna Longline Boatowners and Exporters Association, Taiwan Squid Fishery Association, Taiwan Tuna Purse Seiners Association, Taiwan Tuna Longline Association, and Distant Fisheries Youth Association said the industry’s continuing efforts on labor are “simply ignored” by the campaign groups.

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Bumble Bee targets younger consumers with new marketing campaign

April 13, 2022 — Bumble Bee Seafoods is debuting a “Good For You” advertising campaign designed to “recruit the next generation of tuna lovers by dispelling category perceptions and inspiring new usage ideas,” the San Diego, California, U.S.A.-based company said in a press release.

The company’s new campaign “offers a simple, memorable expression of not only the culinary and nutrition story behind tuna, but also an acknowledgement of the amazing authenticity behind the people who love what tuna does for them.”

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Taiwanese tuna industry rep criticizes labor lawsuit filed against Bumble Bee Seafood

April 8, 2022 — The representative body for the Taiwanese tuna industry has criticized the decision by an American NGO to take a case against a Taiwan-based tuna processor instead of collaborating with government and industry on solutions.

Global Labor Justice – International Labor Rights Forum (GLJ-ILRF) filed suit against San Diego, California, U.S.A.-based Bumble Bee Seafood – a major tuna brand and subsidiary of Fong Chun Formosa Fishery Company (FCF), a Taiwan-based seafood trader and fishing company – over what GLJ ILRF said were its “false and deceptive” marketing claims made by Bumble bee that it sources its tuna through a “fair and safe supply chain.”

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

 

Bumble Bee “adamantly disagrees” with forced labor lawsuit claims

March 29, 2022 — Bumble Bee Seafood “adamantly disagrees” with claims made in a new lawsuit that the supplier and its owner, Kaohsiung, Taiwan-based FCF Co., use forced labor and have inadequate worker-safety standards.

The company “adamantly disagrees with the allegations made in the lawsuit and will defend ourselves,” the San Diego, California, U.S.A.-based tuna firm said in a statement to SeafoodSource. “We continue to work within our supply chain, with others in the tuna industry and through the Seafood Task Force to make the responsible recruitment and treatment of all workers an ongoing top priority.”

Read the full story at SeafoodSource

NOAA report highlights 2021 climate, weather, ocean research

March 29, 2022 — Launching the first ever national rip current forecast model, creating high-resolution sea ice information to improve navigation, and using artificial intelligence to process marine mammal calls: These are just a few of NOAA’s many notable scientific accomplishments from the past year. The newly released 2021 NOAA Science Report includes more than 60 stories that represent a selection of NOAA’s 2021 research and development accomplishments across the range of NOAA’s mission. Some of NOAA’s biggest science accomplishments from 2021 include the following 4 stories:

1. Looking at how climate change could impact West Coast fisheries

The “Future Seas” project is a collaborative effort that uses models to explore potential impacts of climate change on West Coast fisheries and evaluate strategies for managing those impacts. This year, the team of scientists completed detailed projections of West Coast ocean conditions out to the year 2100 and used them to project potential climate-driven changes in the distributions and landings of Pacific sardine and albacore tuna in the California Current System, an ocean current that moves southward along the West Coast of North America. Thanks to the Future Seas project, scientists can now provide  information and advice on climate resilience to West Coast fishing communities, which helps them better prepare for the effects of climate change.

Read the full story from NOAA