The certification body, Bureau Veritas Certification (BV), has informed that the South Brittany sardine purse seine fishery has entered full assessment. According to BV they initially seek to open a dialogue with all organisations or individuals with a direct interest in the fishery. They appealed that anyone wishing to provide comments or information to the assessment process (relevant to the status of the stock, ecosystem interactions or fishery management practices) is invited to contact Xavière Lagadec.
In its press brief BV give the information about the location of fishery which is FAO zone VIIIa and statistical rectangles 25E5, 24E5 and 24E6. Bay of Biscay: South coast of Brittany between 5 to 10 nautical miles off the coast. The method used for fishing is purse seine (Bolinche).
It is said that Brittany’s Regional Fisheries and Fish Farming is managing the Bolinche (purse-seine) fishery activities. It is told that the assessment process is expected to take between 9 and 12 months and is scheduled for completion around October 2009. If the fishery get MSC certificate it can use MSC logo which would help boost the business.
