Tuna - The Power of Mass Marketing vs Conservation

As the Bluefin tuna debate rages through 11 different nations and as many NGO's, we pause to remind those on the front lines that when it comes to mass marketing, conservation has nothing on well heeled commercial interests who want to see the next two billion consumers eating tuna.

Let's rethink how we market to the populace. Clearly the threat of mercury in the diet does not factor into the commercial propaganda:

RTSea on ICCAT, Oceana and Sharks

Richard Theiss at the RTSea Blog has in depth look at the current round of talks over tuna catches and "tuna like fisheries" in Paris this week - ICCAT.

As always Richard distills this complex issue down to the major players and what's truly at stake for the oceans.

Great reading:

As reported earlier today, the ICCAT (International Convention for Conservation of Atlantic Tuna) is meeting this week in Paris as a part of the organization's annual review of bluefin tuna catch limits. But ICCAT's charter is not limited to the management of only tuna fisheries. It also considers the management of "tuna-like" fisheries, which is a catch-all phrase that can include other pelagic migratory predators including swordfish, sailfish, and sharks.

While outcomes from past ICCAT meetings have served more to support the commercial fishing industry than the support of ocean species conservation, recognized conservation groups, like Oceana, continue to bring information to the attention of the ICCAT regarding the rapidly declining numbers of apex ocean predators. This year, Oceana is focusing on sharks and the need for the ICCAT to seriously consider addressing the number of sharks being taken - whether legally or otherwise - and the potential for further abuse through under-reporting.

Oceana has released a new report that estimates that as many as 1.3 million sharks were taken in the Atlantic in 2008. Averaging the weight of the various 21 species listed in the report as being caught within ICCAT-monitored waters, that number equates to 65,000 tons of shark. To put that into perspective, the ICCAT currently limits tuna harvests to under 14,000 tons of tuna - and that is a figure that many scientists believe will doom the Atlantic bluefin tuna to extinction. Just what can we expect with 65,000 tons of shark disappearing each year?

On top of that, Oceana believes 1.3 million sharks could be a gross underestimation due to under-reporting. According to Oceana, based on scientific estimates from Hong Kong shark fin trade data, the true number could be three times higher - although, you can expect that figure to be dismissed by fishing industry advocates as speculative and unreliable.

“Sharks are virtually unmanaged at the international level,” said Oceana's Elizabeth Griffin. "ICCAT has a responsibility to protect sharks. It is time to protect our ocean's top predators."

Complete Post.

Holy "Old School"

From the guys over at the Squid Force Blog. They find the most amazing videos. This one's got pretty much everything:

1. Tuna
2. Fishing
3. Sharks
4. Guns

"Take more than a stinkin' shark to make you back off now". Who wrote this stuff?

"Cats" responsible for fish declines?

The nice couple over at A Couple Dives posted the following story about the sheer amount of fish fed to "domesticated cats" worldwide.

Turns out the numbers are amazing, and may in fact be a leading factor in the collapse of fish stocks. Seems Rum Tum Tugger's got some 'splaining to do:

Apparently, our very own pet cats will soon drive us out of house and home!

Dr. Giovanni Turchini, with colleague Professor Sena De Silva, has found that an estimated 2.48 million tons of fish is used by the global cat food industry each year. Wild forage fish, such as sardines, herring, anchovy and capelin, account for the bulk of these numbers.

Editors Note: This is why we pull from other blogs as well, they get the goods, while we are off chasing Shark Free Marinas.