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Mediterranean NGOs launch call for action against uncontrolled tuna farming
4th October 2003
WWF
Cartagena, Murcia, Spain - WWF and other Mediterranean environmental NGOs launched a call for action against unregulated tuna farming today. The call for action comprises a document to be circulated among, and signed by, all major stakeholders affected by the harmful trend in the area (mainly artisanal fishermen, the tourism sector, and local communities).
In their appeal to action, the NGOs warn that the massive expansion in tuna farming threatens to decimate the already over-fished wild tuna in the Mediterranean and ask for a moratorium on the development of new tuna farms in the Mediterranean. They urge the governments around the Mediterranean, the management bodies ICCAT and GFCM, and in particular the European Union through the ongoing reform of its Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), to regulate this new activity. In addition, the NGOs call for an elimination of all subsidies supporting tuna farming. They also call on Japan and South Korea, the primary consumers of Mediterranean tuna, to ensure that their markets support this future regulation.
The call for action was launched at the a gathering of the Mediterranean environmental NGOs most concerned by the rapidly expanding tuna farming industry, in Cartagena, Region of Murcia, Spain (The Murcian coast is the biggest producer of fattened captive tuna in the world). The meeting was attended by WWF, ANSE (Spain), AZIR (Morocco), Nature Trust (Malta), SAD AFAG (Turkey), and SUNCE (Croatia), representing nine Mediterranean countries in total.
"Tuna farming is a rapidly growing large scale industry. Its expansion is uncontrolled and frequently crosses legal boundaries. With its narrow and solely business-oriented vision, tuna farming is increasing the pressure on the already threatened wild tuna stock. If no effective regulation is put in place, wild blue-fin tuna will completely disappear from the Mediterranean Sea." said Paolo Guglielmi, Head of the Marine Unit at the WWF Mediterranean Programme Office.
Unlike aquaculture, where fish are bred and reared in captivity, tuna farming uses fish captured in the wild The highly prized blue-fin are then fattened and exported mainly to Japan for sushi production. Tuna farming is officially considered as a "post-harvesting" practice rather than one based on direct capture, and thus avoids every regional and international rule set up to manage fisheries.
Last year, more than 12 tuna farms operating in the Mediterranean region produced 11,000 tonnes of tuna, compared to almost nothing five years ago. This is more than half of the world's total. Mediterranean tuna farms are found in Spain, Italy, Malta, and Croatia. Other countries concerned by tuna farming include France, Tunisia, Turkey, and Algeria.
For further information:
Anne Rémy
Head of Communications, WWF Mediterranean Programme Office
Tel.: +39 06 844 97 424
E-mail: aremy@wwfmedpo.org
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