Proposal calls for 30 percent cut in big-eyed tuna catch

Big-eyed tuna catches need to be cut by 30 percent, says the Commission for the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPFC).
The proposal will be tabled at the commission's next annual meeting in Pusan, South Korea, on Dec. 8. Japan, which primarily fishes in the area, has decided to comply with the proposal to reduce its catch by 30 percent over three years from 2009.
The move comes just as a dispute over the reduction of catch size for Pacific bluefin tuna in the Atlantic Ocean has been settled. The new proposal, which affects big-eyed and yellowfin tuna, is likely to have a knock-on effect on the price of tuna sashimi.
Big-eyed tuna are usually caught in round nets, which also scoop up younger fish, thus adversely affecting the total population. Between 2003 and 2006, the commission recommended an average catch reduction of 30 percent.
A plan last year to reduce catch size by 25 percent failed due to differences of opinion between committee member states.
(Mainichi Japan) December 2, 2008