The global commercial catch of tuna reached 5 million tonnes in 2014 with most being fished from healthy stocks, says the latest ISSF Tuna Stock Status Update published by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF).
The ISSF report indicates that 77% of the total volume of tuna catch worldwide in 2014 was from stocks at a “healthy level of abundance.”
“While 77% of the world’s tuna catch comes from healthy stocks, it is important to remember that there are four stocks — representing 13% of the catch — that are being overfished,” said Dr Victor Restrepo, ISSF Vice President, Science.
“Even though there are management measures in place for them, these measures are proving to be insufficient to end overfishing and a greater effort is required.”
Previous Tuna Stock Status Update reports showed 78% of tuna catch from healthy stocks in 2014, 87% in 2013, 86% in 2012, and 94% in 2011.
From a perspective of tuna stocks, 44% of tuna stocks globally are at a healthy level of abundance, and 39% are overfished.
Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO) bigeye tuna, for example, continues to be slightly overfished and was downgraded from a Green (healthy abundance) rating to a Yellow (intermediate) rating since the previous February 2016 report.
Other overfished stocks in this report were Western Pacific Ocean (WPO) bigeye, Atlantic Ocean (AO) bigeye, and Indian Ocean (IO) yellowfin.
Tuna Stock Status Update also reports on tuna management measures recently enacted by tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs). Significant newly adopted measures covered in the report include the adoption by the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) of harvest control rules (HCRs) for skipjack tuna, as well as a plan for rebuilding the overfished IO yellowfin stock.
