News
February 25, 2010
EU-Iceland talks may start in dire straits
Fisheries may be one of the biggest stumbling blocks, as the EU Commission has now given green light for membership talks with Iceland. “We will be applying the same criteria as are applied to any other country. There is no short cut,” said enlargement commissioner Stefan Füle while announcing the commission’s recommendation to move ahead … Continued
February 24, 2010
PECH ponders pros and cons of farming fish
Aquaculture can be green, a Spanish industry representative claimed to somewhat sceptical MEPs at a hearing in the European Parliament’s Fisheries Committee (PECH). Otero Lourido, director of the Galician Turbot Producers Association, referred to one of his own establishments in Galicia, where one of the world’s largest aquaculture sites is located right next to the … Continued
February 24, 2010
Japan says ”clear no” to tuna ban
The Japanese Fisheries minister, representing three quarters of the global bluefin tuna consumption, has come out strongly against a trade ban on the threatened species, common in sushi. A meeting of the parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Doha, Qatar, on 13-25 March will decide on a proposed inclusion … Continued
February 24, 2010
Sardines Made in USA no more
Reduced herring quotas are forcing the last US remaining sardine cannery to close down, its parent company has announced. The Stinson Seafood cannery in Prospect, Maine, employing some 130 people, will cease operations on April 18 after having been around for more than a century. Referring to lowered catch quotas for herring in American waters, … Continued
February 23, 2010
COM comes out for tuna ban
The EU Commission has followed suite after the European Parliament decision to support a trade ban on bluefin tuna, saying that it will now search out Member States to reach a common EU position for the CITES meeting in March. The conference of the parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) … Continued
February 19, 2010
Norway having hard time at Winter Olympics
Adding insult to injury – Canada won 8-0 – North American environmentalists staged a protest demonstration outside the Olympic Canada-Norway hockey game – against Norwegian aquaculture. Aiming their protest primarily against the Oslo-based Marine Harvest, the world’s dominant salmon farming company, the activist claimed the industry practice to be “tremendously destructive” to the environment. The … Continued
February 18, 2010
New Swedish Agency to combine fish and environment
A Swedish Public investigation on how best to manage fish resources and the marine environment proposes a new, integrated Government agency and it looks set to end up in Gothenburg. It remains unclear, however, whether the Agriculture or Environment Minister will be representing Sweden in the Fisheries Council. Over the last few months, the Swedish … Continued
February 18, 2010
WWF-US Retailer to work together on seafood sustainability
The WWF has announced a new collaboration with one of America’s largest food retailers towards sustainably sourcing the retailer’s wild-caught seafood. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) noted in a press release that fishing is the principal livelihood for over 200 million people around the world and the primary source of protein for about 950 million … Continued
February 12, 2010
Borg and Namibian Minister share Swedish Seafood Award
In Gothenburg, it was a week of fish and fisheries. For three days everything from capture fisheries and control to cooking for kids was covered. It concluded with the Swedish Seafood Award presented, at the Gothenburg Opera, to ex-commissioner Joe Borg and the Namibian Fisheries Minister. This year, the Swedish Seafood Award – Kungsfenan – … Continued
February 11, 2010
EP backs trade ban on bluefin tuna
The European Parliament has voted in favour of adopting a resolution in support of a ban on the trading blue fin tuna. Support from the European institutions of a ban will likely further pressure the inclusion CITES, the largest global wildlife conservation agreement. Support for the bluefin tuna ban comes with a few conditions, most … Continued