A new investigation by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) has warned that governance failures in the Southeast Pacific squid fishery are pushing one of the world’s most important cephalopod resources towards ecological and social crisis.
The report finds that vast Chinese distant-water fleets targeting jumbo flying squid are exploiting weak regional regulation, limited transparency and regulatory loopholes across the Southeast Pacific. Squid linked to China National Fisheries Corporation, a company previously implicated in fisheries and labour abuses, were exported to major markets including the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom.
According to EJF, fishing effort in the fishery continues to rise despite growing scientific warnings of overfishing and declining catch rates. Jumbo flying squid are described as a keystone species that underpins marine food webs and regional fisheries, meaning their depletion could trigger wider ecosystem disruption across the Pacific.
The investigation highlights what it calls chronic transparency failures within China’s distant-water squid fleet, creating conditions in which environmental harm and human rights abuses can persist. More than half of crew members interviewed by EJF reported physical abuse on board, while almost 60% said shark finning occurred on their vessels.
“China’s industrial squid fishing fleet in the Southeast Pacific is operating beyond effective scrutiny,” said Steve Trent, CEO and Founder of the Environmental Justice Foundation. “This investigation shows how a lack of transparency and accountability at the regional level is driving environmental damage and putting lives at risk. Transparency in industrial fisheries can no longer be optional. It is the foundation of a safe, sustainable ocean.”
Beyond labour concerns, EJF raises alarms over bycatch and ecosystem impacts linked to intensive squid fishing, warning that overexploitation could have cascading effects throughout the wider Pacific Ocean. Squid are highly sensitive to environmental change and play a critical role in regulating marine ecosystems, the report notes.
The findings come ahead of a key meeting of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO). EJF argues that the organisation has yet to adopt meaningful conservation and management measures for squid, despite mounting evidence of rising fishing pressure. The absence of catch limits, effective monitoring and enforceable safeguards leaves the fishery dangerously exposed, the NGO says.
EJF is urging SPRFMO member states to introduce science-based catch limits, strengthen monitoring and control measures, and close loopholes that allow destructive practices to continue. The report also calls on coastal, port and market states to play a stronger role in enforcing compliance and preventing ports and supply chains from enabling abuse.
Central to EJF’s recommendations is the adoption of the Global Charter for Fisheries Transparency, which promotes full disclosure of vessel ownership, mandatory tracking and public access to fisheries data.
“This crisis is solvable,” Trent said. “The tools exist. We don’t even need to look further than this fishery: Peru has significantly reduced illegal fishing in recent years by requiring more tracking data. What is missing is the wider political will. By embracing transparency and acting through SPRFMO, governments can protect a vital fishery, defend human rights, and secure the future of the Southeast Pacific.”
