Marfenio Y. Tan, president of the Socsksargen Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries Inc. told that the hundreds of local and foreign participants are expected to attend the affair dubbed “Managing Our Tuna Resource: Exploring Opportunities and Alternatives.” He also added that this year’s annual event is a clear witness that the congress has brought significant milestones in areas of policy advocacy and has strengthened our tuna industry’s competitiveness.
The annual event has attracted top government and business leaders in the domestic and foreign tuna industry circuit and allied industries. This gives Philippines the membership to the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, a fishing regulatory body in the Pacific Ocean. Tan told that past tuna congresses helped improved the capabilities of the industry players for good handling and manufacturing practices. It also helped in the passage of significant competitiveness policies such as the Handline Fishing Law, he added.
According to Tan all of these key accomplishments have greatly contributed towards the achievement of a sustainable and competitive Philippine tuna industry. He said that now on its 10th year, plenary discussions will focus on issues of resource management sustainability and fishing access with other countries, which the local tuna industry players have been seeking in the past several years.
Besides there will be other topics include exploring the opportunities and challenges brought about by market trends, including windows of opportunities for aquaculture and tuna farming. It is true that dwindling tuna stocks in the high seas has become a major concern for industry stakeholders globally. And this has increased by the rising prices of fuel that hiked fishing operational costs and reduced profit margins of local producers.
