The latest addition to the portfolio of MSC blue ticks held by the fleet represented by OPAGAC is MSC certification for the Eastern Pacific skipjack tuna fishery.
This means that 63% of the Spanish tuna purse seine fleet’s catches are now from MSC-certified fisheries, and a further 17% is at the assessment stage – with certification expected to be passed later this year. With seven of the 13 stocks it fishes now certified, this translates to landings of 240,000 tonnes of certified tropical tuna annually by the Spanish vessels.
‘These figures show that the future of fishery resources requires a professional action model, based on scientific rigour, that allows real decisions to guarantee good management,’ said OPAGAC managing director Julio Morón.
‘This new certification is an excellent example of the effectiveness of a fisheries management model based on Regional Fisheries Organisations, compliance with resource measures by the countries and member fleets, and their proactivity to minimise impact on the environment.’
The certification of the Eastern Pacific skipjack tuna stock means that the Spanish tuna vessels within OPAGAC are the first to achieve certification for this species in three oceanic regions (Western and Eastern Pacific and the Indian Ocean) out of the four where it is caught. Certification for the Atlantic is currently under evaluation.
Eastern Pacific skipjack tuna is caught by 19 freezer tuna purse seiners belonging to OPAGAC members Albacora, Bolton Group, Servicios Atuneros del Norte, Pesquera Ugavi, Uniocean, Central Tuna Management Corporation and Txopituna.
With the addition of Eastern Pacific skipjack, the MSC has endorsed the activity of a total of 48 tuna vessels in the three ocean regions, under the management of four RFOs. This blue tick guarantees that their tuna comes from stocks in good condition, and that fishing activity generates minimal environmental impact, carried out under strict conditions. This latest certification has been audited independently by LRQA (formerly Lloyd’s Register) and covers both fishing using FADs and on free schools.
Emphasis is on the 100% observer coverage (human or electronic) of on-board activity, plus efforts to minimise impact on non-target species through the use of non-entangling FADs. Both are part of the Code of Good Practice that the Spanish fleet voluntarily implemented in 2012, with compliance verified annually by AZTI.
