TheFishSite Newsletter - 3 April 2012

Welcome to this week's newsletter

Editorial: Securing Fish Stocks and Maintaining Sustainable Fisheries

This week, talks on key conservation measures for high value tuna stocks, at the annual meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, have reached a deadlock. No solution was found to prevent the downward spiral of bigeye tuna stocks, whilst measures to protect yellowfin stocks were also postponed.

The World Wildlife Fund has expressed dismay that the sustainable management of tuna stocks has been stalled and said in some cases it had gone backwards.

The Marine Stewardship Council has suspended certificates on seven mackerel fisheries in the North East Atlantic Ocean, following the failure of Norway, the EU, Iceland and the Faroes to reach a decision on mackerel quotas. This has meant that there has been a significant increase in the amount of mackerel caught.

In Fiji, marine protected areas are under threat from illegal fishing. Because of the current legislation, there is nothing that communities can do to deter poachers.

The Department of Fisheries is currently reviewing the Fisheries Act, however, it is only in consultation and will be some time before any new legislation is implemented.

After threats of a large cut to the allowable catch for Gulf of Maine cod in 2012, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has said that collaboration with the New England Fishery Management Council has meant that cuts to the catch limit are not as bad as they could have been for fishermen.

With stock assessments showing cod numbers declining, NOAA had suggested a catch limit of less than 1,500 metric tons. Instead fishermen will be allowed to catch up to 6,700 metric tons in 2012.

On a more positive note, the Australian government has ratified two international treaties to manage and conserve fish stocks in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

These treaties will close a governance gap in important high seas fisheries that neighbour Australia’s domestic fisheries and they will ensure that fishing for those stocks will be subject to international regulation, said the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Joe Ludwig.

The treaties will manage and conserve deep sea and non-highly migratory fishery resources in previously unregulated areas of the south Pacific and southern Indian Oceans. Fishery resources covered by the treaties include commercially valuable deep-water species such as orange roughy and alfonsino, which the Australian industry has been fishing for more than a decade.

In Mexico, a management plan has been launched to protect clam fisheries of the coast in Baja California. This plan will help manage the development, reproduction and stocks of the species, which generated more than $19 million in 2011 on foreign markets.

To prevent overfishing, certain areas have been designated for commercial fishing, and limited permits will be available.

In New Zealand, the Ministry of Agriculture has increased the catch limits for commercial fishers in the Gisborne rock lobster fishery, whilst the limit in Otago will decrease.

Rock lobster fisheries are closely managed to ensure long-term sustainability as well as securing benefits for all fishery sectors, said the Ministry's Director of Fisheries Management, James Stevenson-Wallace.

Charlotte Johnston

New e-learning course on Sustainable Aquaculture from St Andrews

This Week's Feature Articles

We have 5 new features this week:

Discards and Fitting Square Mesh Panels
In the fourth of a series of articles for Fishing news, Mike Montgomerie, Gear Technologist at Seafish, continues by examining the options for fitting square mesh panels.

Disease Management: The Big Challenge
At Global Aquaculture Alliance’s recent GOAL 2011 conference in Santiago, Chile, Executive Director Wally Stevens discussed in his welcoming remarks the five major challenges between us and our objective of responsibly doubling aquaculture production in a decade: disease management, feed supply, environmental impacts, funding and market acceptance, writes Darryl Jory, Development Manager, Global Aquaculture Advocate.

Levercliff Report Generates Food for Thought
Production of trout in the UK is increasing, according to a study by the Levercliff Associates, writes Patrick Smith, Chairman of the British Trout Association.

Application of Enterococcus Faecium as a Probiotic Strain in Aquatic Species
Probiotic bacteria are a sustainable approach to modulate the gut microflora towards a favorable composition, which is of utmost importance since the digestive system of fish and shrimp is an important entrance point for infections.

Salmon Market Outlook
Salmon farmers see record prices in early 2011 drop to money losing levels in no time. 2012 outlook negative from mid year as production is expected to increase by up to 15 per cent, according to Globefish.

Company News

Ildex Viet Nam A Success, Says Meriden
VIET NAM - Meriden Animal Health Limited exhibited at Ildex Viet Nam last week, welcoming the opportunity to greet old and new customers alike.

Anpario Acquires Meriden Animal Health Limited
UK - Anpario plc, one of the leading suppliers of natural high performance feed additives to enhance health, growth and sustainability in global agriculture and aquaculture markets, has acquired Meriden Animal Health Limited.

Novartis Sponsors Young Scientist Award at AquaUK
UK - Novartis Animal Health (NAH) is to recognise the best student presentation at Aquaculture UK, with a “Young Scientist Award” and an expenses paid trip to its Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada, dedicated Aquaculture Research & Development site. NAH is also sponsoring the first day of the conference.

Global Fish Industry News