WORLDWIDE: The fish are guided to platforms by divers for harvesting. They are euthanised humanely, by an immediate spike into their brain. This method is known as “iki jime” in Japanese. It is a technique that minimises stress as lactic acid in their system that can change their flavour. It takes approximately 40 seconds to get the fish into an ice slurry or refrigerated sea water, which keeps quality at a premium. On board the tuna harvest boats are representatives of Japanese companies who scrutinise the product before export. They look for good shaped fish that have suffered no damage in the harvesting process. A segment is taken from the tail to determine quality.  A strong, deep red colour and good fat deposits are considered extremely favourable.

Quality and colour of SBT muscle flesh is assessed 3 times prior to the sale of a fish. Tuna may be purchased frozen or fresh.

Tuna Filleting or Loining

There are many parts to the perfect fish – the prized toro or belly section, akami along the backbone and the kama or neck area. Japanese chef Yumiko Asao cuts at an angle along the grain, using the toro and the jewel like akami sections of the fish for juicy, melting pieces of Australian sashimi.

Southern Bluefin Tuna will be in the markets in Japan within 48 hours of harvesting and processing.

Source: https://asbtia.com.au/tuna-products/tuna-processing

Worldwide: Seven members of the seafood industry and seven NGOs are calling upon the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to better protect the fisher’s welfare on wild-caught vessels by improving data collection and analysis of labor-related accidents.

Three major tuna processors, the Bolton Group, Bumble Bee, and Tri-Marine, along with seafood industry groups of Fedespesca, SEA Alliance, and the Hong Kong Sustainable Seafood Coalition have signed the call to action, which includes asking for a mechanism to gather better data and reduce fisher morality. The NGOs involved in the campaign are Earthworm, ADM Capital Foundation, ClientEarth, the Fishing Industry Association Papua New Guinea (FIA PNG), Friend of the Sea, FishWise, the Global Seafood Alliance, and the Teng Hoi Conservation Organization.

Many of the signed organizations are already advocating for ratification and implementation of key international agreements to improve fisher safety and welfare. These include the IMO Cape Town Agreement, the ILO Work in Fishing Convention, the FAO Port State Measures Agreement, and the International Convention on Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Fishing Vessels Personnel.

“For decades, the scientific community, NGOs, governments, and global stakeholders have focused their efforts and care on tuna stocks and their health status. It is time to recognize the importance of the human factor in fisheries and that fisheries cannot exist without people," FIA PNG Sustainability Director Marcelo Hidalgo said in a press release. "Our tuna fleet in PNG cares about the safety and welfare of our crew and skippers. Since 2019, we have increased assessment and improvement of the decent working and living onboard our fishing vessels aligned with ILO 188 and FISH Standard for Crew, as a private-sector initiative. It is time that FAO and regulators, such as the regional fisheries management organizations, also request this to global fisheries."

he organizations involved in the campaign called on the FAO to “support the development of a mechanism that can establish a data collection scheme and repository on global fisher accident and mortality rates.”

Previous research by the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 1999 and later by the FAO, found annual fisher deaths in the region of 24,000 and 32,000 respectively, or 65 and 87 deaths per day. With the 35th Session of the Committee on Fisheries of the FAO, it was highlighted that new research suggests the number of fatalities within the fishing sector to be greater than 100,000 annually. This research will soon be published by the Pew Charitable Trusts, Lloyds Register Foundation, IMO, FISH Safety Foundation, and FAO, with contributions from many FAO members. The high mortality rate may be a result of climate change and illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing activities that push fishing vessels into unsafe waters, according to the groups. Also, insufficient oversight of vessel construction and operations is a driver towards a higher mortality rate, they said.

“Fishers around the world play a critical role in supporting food security, livelihoods, and sustainable fisheries management. Ensuring that they can carry out their work safely should be a priority for every business involved in the seafood supply chain. We strongly support the creation of a mechanism to improve information on accidents and fatalities at a global level, so that we can improve visibility and understanding of the risks fishers face, and make sure resources are targeted effectively,” New England Seafood Head of Social Responsibility Amber Madley, who also serves as the advocacy lead for the SEA Alliance.

The organizations involved in the campaing "are committed to ensuring the seafood bought and sold is sourced from responsible producers who do not engage in activities that expose fishers to unsafe and harmful working conditions."

"We believe it is critically important to improve data collection and analysis of accidents and loss of life incidents in the seafood industry," they said. "This has the aim to understand the drivers behind the high fatality rates and ensure the correct safety initiatives are being developed and implemented from robust data."

Source: Seafood Source

USA: Of the total commercial tuna catch worldwide, 86.4% is sourced from stocks deemed to be at “healthy” levels of abundance, according to the latest edition of the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) ‘Status of the Stocks’ report.

 ISSF’s July 2022 report also finds that 9.2% of the total tuna catch came from overfished stocks, and 4.4% came from stocks at an intermediate level of abundance.

Six months previously, the “healthy” level was at a much higher 80.5%, with the improvement mainly attributed to a positive change in the rating of the Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO) skipjack stock, which represents about 6% of the global tuna catch.

In March 2022, the rating for the status of the EPO skipjack stock had been changed from green to yellow due to the lack of a recent stock assessment by the relevant regional fisheries management organization (RFMO), the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC).

Given the new assessment carried out by the IATTC in May 2022, the rating has been restored to green for the July report.

ISSF’s latest report also determines that the Indian Ocean yellowfin, Pacific bluefin tuna and Mediterranean albacore stocks are overfished and subject to overfishing, while the Indian Ocean albacore and bigeye stocks are subject to overfishing.

In 2020, the total global tuna catch was 4.9 million tonnes, which was about 10% lower than in 2019. Some 57% of this was skipjack tuna, followed by yellowfin (30%), bigeye (8%) and albacore (4%). Bluefin tuna accounted for 1% of the global catch.

Some 66% of the catch is from purse seining, followed by longline (10%), pole-and-line (7%), gillnets (4%), and miscellaneous gears (13%). These percentages have not changed since the previous report.

There are 23 stocks of major commercial tuna species worldwide — six albacore, four bigeye, four bluefin, five skipjack, and four yellowfin stocks. Status of the Stocks summarises the results of the most recent scientific assessments of these stocks, as well as the current management measures adopted by the RFMOs.

Source: World Fishing