Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) has released the annual sustainability overview of fishmeal and fish oil fisheries covering the 28 principal reduction areas around the Atlantic Ocean and South America.
The report shows that about 70% of fish from the Atlantic Ocean and South America used for fishmeal and fish oil come from relatively well managed stocks and would meet the current feed requirements of most leading aquaculture certifications.
But the other 30% of fish originate from 14 stocks that are not well managed, although only four of those were rated poorly on biomass – a crucial indicator of environmental impact.
SFP says that findings are broadly consistent with those of previous years. It has calculated that almost half of all fish used for fishmeal and fish oil come from stocks that contain fishery improvement projects making good progress. This suggests that the performance of fishmeal and fish oil fisheries will improve over time.
But worryingly, the report also finds little evidence of ecosystem-based fisheries management being applied in a consistent and comprehensive fashion. It recommends that fisheries that have mastered single-stock management should begin to consider the wider effects on marine food webs.
Jim Cannon, CEO, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, said: “It is good news that a large proportion of fish from the Atlantic Ocean and South America used for fishmeal and fish oil come from relatively well managed fisheries. However, it is disappointing that there is still little evidence of ecosystem-based fisheries management being applied within the sector and future reports will examine this question in greater detail.”
