Mexico’s largest fishery by volume, the Pacific sardine (Sardinops sagax) fishery in the Gulf of California, is now able to use blue ecolabel from MSC. The fisheyr has successfully passed the independent assessment to the MSC standard for sustainable, well-managed fisheries. Demonstrating the strength of the MSC’s open and transparent stakeholder process, an objection formally lodged against the fishery’s certification has been resolved through consultation—clearing the way for the fishery’s certification.
About 90 percent of the fishery vessels fishing the Gulf og California for sardines. Cámara Nacional de la Industria Pesquera, Delegación Sonora is the fishery client. The fish caught in this fishery forms large schools that are fished by purse seines, hauled on board and landed mostly by fish pumps. In the 2009/2010 season landings of Pacific sardines were 256,000 metric tons in the Gulf of California. About 85 percent of the total production is used for reduction to fish meal. Sardines are also packed in cans for sale into domestic and international markets.
Leon Tissot, president of the Cámara Nacional de la Industria Pesquera, Delegación Sonora, said that the members are proud that the fishery has met all the criteria of a sustainable fishery set forward by MSC. He added that the certification is important because it sends a clear message that it is possible to fish in a responsible way in accordance to the FAO fishing code.
Stakeholders work together to resolve objectionComunidad y Biodiversidad (COBI) A.C., a Mexican marine conservation organization, raised an objection on behalf of several non-governmental organizations and scientists from the region. Dr. Luis Bourillon, Mesoamerican Reef director for Comunidad y Biodiversidad, A.C., said that this opens a new phase of collaboration to ensure that the largest fishery in Mexico will be sustainable for generations to come.
Priciliano Melendrez, undersecretary for Fisheries and Aquaculture of the State of Sonora, told that the certification of the sardine fishery in the Gulf of California is a great achievement for the members of this industry and the communities involved. He added that this collaboration between the fishery industry, fishermen, businessmen, specialists, administrators and NGOs, for the development of responsible fishing has been demonstrated.
Kerry Coughlin, regional director for MSC Americas, said that this assessment and certification to the MSC standard is a great example of the fishing industry, conservation organizations and other fishery stakeholders coming together in a transparent, consensus building process to address issues around sustainability.
