The Pew Environment Group has criticized MSC sustainable certificate for the fish caught on surface longlines. The reason is that this practice threatens vulnerable marine species including bluefin tuna, blue marlin, short-fin mako sharks and loggerhead and leatherback sea turtles.
Day Boat Seafood, a wholesaler, has got MSC “sustainable” label on swordfish, yellowfin and bigeye tuna caught on surface longlines in the waters off northeast Florida. An MSC label on fish acts as a marketing tool that can increase sales of the product. Pew questioned the certification saying that if the MSC certifies this fishery, other companies similar to Day Boat can catch swordfish, bigeye and yellowfin tuna on surface longlines in this particular region and also could have their fish certified as “sustainable.”
It is fact that surface longline boats is an indiscriminate fishing gear catches and kills thousands of other animals, including threatened and endangered sea turtles, and iconic fish such as bluefin tuna, white marlin and sailfish. Lee Crockett, director of federal fisheries policy for the Pew Environment Group, told that moving forward with this proposal would be short-sighted and ill-advised.
Crockett informed that the MSC label is supposed to help consumers identify eco-friendly seafood. But an MSC certification for this fishery would just perpetuate the use of destructive fishing gear while discouraging the development of less damaging alternatives. From 2001 to 2008, in a management area that includes Florida’s east coast, surface longlines caught an estimated 632 leatherback and 506 loggerhead turtles.
