Fishing industry needs saving

Cape Town – The world's sea fishing resources are under pressure and participants in the industry's value chain will have to be prepared to make sacrifices to overcome the effects of years of over-exploitation of this food source.

According to information from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, 30% of the world's fishing supply is being over-exploited while 50% has been exhausted or almost exhausted, says the international McKinsey group in its McKinsey Quarterly internet publication.

The report states that wiping out this fish resource holds economic consequences not only for fishermen, but also for the entire value chain which involves an estimated 180m workers.

Neither does it take into account that fish is an important source of protein, especially for developing countries.

By 2008 the value of fish exports amounted to more than $85bn.

Fish and fish products are regarded as among the most traded food commodities, with a value chain that globally generates $500bn a year.

McKinsey said the fishing industry could make an even greater economic contribution if the resources were to be properly managed. An estimated $51bn is lost annually as a result of mismanagement of global stocks of fish.

According to the report something clearly needs to be done to manage fish resources sustainably, but little information is available regarding the challenges presented by such projects, in particular the economic implications for those who depend on the fishing industry for an income.

From a McKinsey Group study undertaken to determine these challengers, there appear to be three particular aspects rendering the conversion to sustainable fishing practices problematic.

The first is the need to catch fewer fish, which would mean less income for workers in the fishing industry.

Participants who have no alternative source of revenue and do not have a long-term interest in the fishing industry will be more concerned about short-term losses of their catches than about exhausting the stock of fish, says the report.

Second, it is possible that when the fishing industry become stable and sustainable, its income and other benefits will not be equitably distributed throughout the industry.

A final conclusion is that, although there is a need for both reliable statistics and expert management, it would be difficult to implement these in practice.

With defective available information on fish stocks, even those with the best intentions will continue to catch too much fish.

Among other things, McKinsey did a study on the bluefin tuna that occurs in the waters of the Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. This industry is on the point of collapse owing to the fish species' biological vulnerability, as well as to excessive and illegal unaccounted-for harvesting.

Three possible outcomes have been considered to determine the future of the bluefin tuna industry: first, a continuation of current practices; second, the elimination of illegal fishing; and third, closing down the industry until it has fully recovered.

In the case of the first scenario it was found that the industry would collapse within two to five years. The second and third possibilities would put the bluefin tuna industry back on its feet.

Closing down the industry for a period to allow it to recover fully would produce the quickest results, but would have the most serious financial impact on the fishermen – who would suffer significant losses.

A similar study was undertaken on the fishing industry in the Gulf of Mexico. It was found that the best outcome for the industry in that part of the world would be to keep to the permissible quotas and reduce fishing as a pastime by 60%.

 - Sake24

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