UK fisherman, David Warwick, is tweeting his daily ''FishTales'' in a bid to highlight the problems faced by the often “misunderstood” fishing industry.
In a tweet to World Fishing and Aquaculture on Wednesday morning (14 August), Mr Warwick said: “When fishing is covered in the papers, they're only interested in one side and our point of view is never included.”
The aim is to “provide public insight into our [fishermen’s] lives and show we are guardians of the sea, harvesting and protecting for the next generation,” he added.
Mr Warwick says he also wants to showcase what a life on the high seas is really like, as well as the practices used by the majority of the industry to fish environmentally and sustainably.
“The biggest issues are quota and science used to base them. There is a huge gulf between what we see on the grounds and what experts tell us,” he explained.
The series of tweets are part of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations’ (NFFO) ‘Tweets from the Deep’ initiative, which aims to raise awareness of the sometimes dangerous daily tasks fishermen perform to put food on the nation’s plate.
Mr Warwick’s day as a commercial fisherman starts at 3am to sail out to grounds up to 20 miles off the Cornish coast and he often doesn’t return until 7pm at night.
He catches mixed species, including cod, haddock, whiting and lemon sole from his 10.5m trawler, Valhalla. On a good day, up to £2,000 worth of fish can be caught, but he is forced home empty handed if a net breaks or poor weather sets in.
The initiative is taking place to celebrate National Fishing Month (19 July to 26 August).
