The latest fishery to enter into Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) assessment is Chile’s squat lobsters and nylon (nailon) shrimp modified trawl fishery.

The fishery targets yellow squat lobster (Cervimunida johni), red squat lobster (Pleuroncodes monodon) and nylon shrimp (Heterocarpus reedi).

Collectively known in Chile as the crustacean fishery, these species are harvested along a large part of the Chilean coast between 26º and 38º S. There are eight units of certification for this fishery assessment which take into account the three species being assessed and the various regions along the coast of Chile where industrial and artisanal fishing takes place.

The fishing season for nylon shrimp runs January through to December with a closure between July-August, and the season for yellow and red squat lobster is April through to December. In 2011, the number of vessels operating overall in the demersal crustacean fishery was 27. Twenty of these vessels were industrial and the remainder were artisanal.

The main commercial markets for the harvests are North America and Europe, where squat lobster are better known as langostino, langos or baby lobster, while the shrimp may be marketed as cold water shrimp, nylon shrimp, camarón nylon or Antarctic camarón.

The clients for the assessment are the Asociación de Industriales y Armadores Pesqueros de la IV Región (AIP) and the Asociación de Exportadores de Frutas de Chile A.G. (ASOEX). The assessment is expected to be completed in 12 months.

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