Fair trade fish: consumer support for broader seafood sustainability

Sustainable seafood initiatives began with efforts to promote and certify seafood sourced from well‐managed stocks caught with a reduced impact on the marine environment. More recently, social equity in fisheries has been the subject of increased concern with suggestions that seafood cannot be certified as sustainable if its production results in social harm, such as unfair wages or the use of forced or child labour. Together with local seafood, which has been promoted as an eco‐friendly and socially conscious alternative to globally sourced seafood, these initiatives signal a growing interest in fisheries as a social–ecological system. However, this increasingly complex landscape of environmental sustainability and social justice may be difficult for the public and seafood consumers to navigate. Here, we investigate consumer understanding of and responsiveness to a range of seafood sustainability initiatives by testing preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for seafood across the three types of sustainability: ecological sustainability, local origin and social sustainability. More than half of respondents demonstrated good understandings of both ecological sustainability and social sustainability with respect to seafood, and respondents were willing to pay more for all three types of sustainability. However, WTP for social sustainability benefits was the lowest, and consumers perceived a high degree of overlap of these benefits with those from locally sourced seafood. These results indicate that seafood certification taking a system‐wide approach has potential to succeed, but that it will need to emerge in concert with the increased public education about social problems associated with globalized fisheries.     

Key attributes related to fishery improvement project (FIP) effectiveness in promoting improvements towards sustainability

Fishery improvement projects (FIPs) are emerging as a popular market‐based means to improve fisheries sustainability and have been employed in scores of fisheries around the world; however, project ability to realize improvements has been highly variable, and little is known about how fishery and project conditions affect improvement efforts. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the FIP model as a tool for improving diverse fisheries around the world, we compile a unique dataset of social, ecological and economic characteristics for over 60 FIPs globally, which we use to identify key attributes correlated with improvements in fishing practices, management and/or on‐the‐water outcomes. Using a random forest classifier, we identify three important attributes related to FIP effectiveness in demonstrating improvements. Specifically, FIPs are more likely to have achieved improvements with increased cumulative project time, when regional‐level management arrangements are present and when the target species has a moderate inherent vulnerability to fishing. Interestingly, improvements were not correlated with a number of expected features, including a fishery's socio‐economic setting or baseline performance against the desired sustainability standard (e.g. the Marine Stewardship Council fisheries standard). This study improves our understanding of factors related to FIP effectiveness in improving fisheries practices and management and provides key insights for practitioners into important attributes to consider when implementing the FIP model to promote fisheries sustainability.     

Expanding the concept of sustainable seafood using Life Cycle Assessment

Fisheries management and sustainability assessment of fisheries more generally have recently expanded their scope from single‐species stock assessment to ecosystem‐based approaches, aiming to incorporate economic, social and local environmental impacts, while still excluding global‐scale environmental impacts. In parallel, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has emerged as a widely used and recommended framework to assess environmental impacts of products, including global‐scale impacts. For over a decade, LCA has been applied to seafood supply chains, leading to new insights into the environmental impact of seafood products. We present insights from seafood LCA research with particular focus on evaluating fisheries management, which strongly influences the environmental impact of seafood products. Further, we suggest tangible ways in which LCA could be taken up in management. By identifying trade‐offs, LCA can be a useful decision support tool and avoids problem shifting from one concern (or activity) to another. The integrated, product‐based and quantitative perspective brought by LCA could complement existing tools. One example is to follow up fuel use of fishing, as the production and combustion of fuel used dominates overall results for various types of environmental impacts of seafood products, and is also often linked to biological impacts of fishing. Reducing the fuel use of fisheries is therefore effective to reduce overall impacts. Allocating fishing rights based on environmental performance could likewise facilitate the transition to low‐impact fisheries. Taking these steps in an open dialogue between fishers, managers, industry, NGOs and consumers would enable more targeted progress towards sustainable fisheries.     

Interactions and management for the future of marine aquaculture and capture fisheries

Aquaculture surpassed wild fisheries as the largest supplier of fish for human consumption in 2014 and is expected to supply the majority of seafood for future increases in demand. Marine and coastal aquaculture, collectively referred to as mariculture, currently represents just 36% of aquaculture production but is poised to expand in the decades ahead. One of the most commonly cited concerns regarding this likely expansion is ecological and socioeconomic interactions with wild‐capture fisheries. While attention has largely been drawn to high‐profile negative externalities from fed finfish and crustacean mariculture, not all marine‐based practices are equivalent. Empirical evidence for the different interactions between mariculture and wild fisheries is often sparse. While negative consequences can arise, positive synergies can also occur. By considering mariculture development in the context of fisheries interactions, we suggest that it is possible to minimize conflicts and maximize positive connections between the two sectors. We provide the first comprehensive synthesis of the interactions between mariculture and wild fisheries, characterizing the types of interactions, evaluating available empirical evidence and identifying where management (sector‐specific and cooperative) can play an important role. We highlight potential effects of mariculture on the efficiency, sustainability, and equity of seafood production and identify remaining knowledge gaps.     

Claiming seafood is ‘sustainable’ risks limiting improvements

Over the past decade, the sustainability of seafood production has improved and is cause for ocean optimism. In an attempt for recognition of ongoing efforts, many producers and food retailers now claim products are ‘sustainable’. What exactly does this mean and could we limit further improvement using this claim? Here, we discuss the sustainable/sustainability dichotomy, and the problem of communicating continual improvement in terms of grand and absolute claims – that is ‘We sell 100% sustainable product.’ We believe a statement like this risks short selling the challenges at hand and removes necessary and ongoing incentives for learning, improving and innovating. We argue the best path for producers and retailers is to demonstrate and communicate the concrete actions and achievements being made towards a more resilient and healthy food system today and for the future. This requires moving away from the current practice of calling products sustainable, and to instead work towards continually improving the sustainability of the products. Focusing on measuring the impact of our actions generates a wealth of substance and establishes a direction of travel towards seafood of greater sustainability and we believe this will help educate, inform and inspire consumers to make good choices for their own and future generations benefit. In this study, ‘seafood’ will refer to both farmed and wild seafood products, and ‘sustainability’ refers to the behavior that drives economic, environmental and ethical progress towards ensuring seafood availability ‘meet(s) the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’.     

Ending overfishing while catching more fish

The world's seas and oceans are a vital source of animal protein from fishing and a major contributor to global food security. It has been argued that global wild‐catch production has reached its limit, and there is concern that many species are overfished. Concerns are also mounting about the state of marine ecosystems and the ecological impacts of fishing on them, with increasing efforts to protect marine biodiversity. Fisheries appear to be at an impasse – demand for seafood is rising but so is concern about the impacts of fishing. However, through a simple analysis, we show that global exploitation rates are well below long‐term sustainable levels at a whole ecosystem level. The oceans can support considerably higher sustainable catch than currently harvested. Overfishing has happened but only to a small fraction of species as a result of intensive and selective fishing. Shifting fishing effort away from highly targeted stocks towards currently underutilized species would reduce pressure on overfished species, result in fewer adverse ecosystem effects of fishing and increase overall fisheries production. This shift requires significant changes to our views about seafood, particularly in the developed world. We suggest ways in which this paradigm shift could happen and the range of expertise that would be required to achieve higher global yields with less ecological impact.     

Integrating physiology and life history to improve fisheries management and conservation

Knowledge of life‐history traits is increasingly recognized as an important criterion for effective management and conservation. Understanding the link between physiology and life history is an important component of this knowledge and in our view is particularly relevant to understanding marine and freshwater fishes. Such linkages (i.e. the life‐history/physiology nexus) have been recently advocated for avian systems and here we explore this concept for fish. This paper highlights the gap in fisheries literature with regard to understanding the relationship between physiology and life history, and proposes ways in which this integration could improve fisheries management and conservation. We use three case studies on different fishes (i.e. the Pacific salmon, the grouper complex and tuna) to explore these issues. The physiological structure and function of fish plays a central role in determining stock response to exploitation and changes in the environment. Physiological measures can provide simple indicators necessary for cost‐effective monitoring in the evaluation of fisheries sustainability. The declining state of world fisheries and the need to develop and implement restoration strategies, such as hatchery production or protected areas, provides strong incentive to better understand the influence of physiology on population and reproductive dynamics and early life history. Physiology influences key population‐level processes, particularly those dealing with reproduction, which must be incorporated into the design and successful implementation of specific and broadscale initiatives (e.g. aquatic protected areas and bycatch reduction). Suggestions are made for how to encourage wider application of the physiology/life‐history link, in fisheries management and conservation, as well as more broadly in education and research.     

Global constraints on rural fishing communities: whose resilience is it anyway?

Sustaining natural resources is regarded as an important component of ecological resilience and commonly assumed to be of similar importance to social and economic vitality for resource‐dependent communities. However, communities may be prevented from benefiting from healthy local resources due to constrained economic or political opportunities. In the case of Alaskan wild salmon, the fisheries are in crisis due to declining economic revenues driven by the proliferation of reliable and increasingly high‐quality products from fish farms around the world. This stands in contrast with many of the world's wild‐capture fisheries where diminished biological abundance has led to fishery collapse. Furthermore, increasing efficiency of salmon farm production, globalization, and dynamic consumer preferences, suggests that the wild salmon industry will continue to be challenged by the adaptability, price and quality of farmed salmon. Conventional responses to reduced revenues by the wild‐capture industry have been to increase economic efficiency through implementing a range of entry entitlement and quota allocation schemes. However, while these mechanisms may improve economic efficiency at a broad scale, they may not benefit local community interests, and in Alaska have precipitated declines in local ownership of the fishery. To be viable, economic efficiency remains a relevant consideration, but in a directionally changing environment (biological, social or economic), communities unable to procure livelihoods from their local resources (through access or value) are likely to seek alternative economic opportunities. The adopted strategies, although logical for communities seeking viability through transformation in a changing world, may not be conducive to resilience of a ‘fishing community’ or the sustainability of their wild fish resources. We use a theoretically grounded systems approach and data from Alaska's Bristol Bay salmon fishery to demonstrate feedbacks between global preferences towards salmon and the trade‐offs inherent when managing for the resilience of wild salmon populations and human communities at different scales.     

Reconciling sustainability,economic efficiency and equity in fisheries: the one that got away?

Concern about the global state of fisheries and fish resources has highlighted the three primary considerations in fisheries management: sustainable utilisation, economic efficiency and equity in access to resources. We appear to be failing in pursuit of all three goals. Living marine resources are particularly threatened by overfishing, leading to many of the world’s fish stocks being heavily, fully or over exploited. Similarly, the economic diagnosis is that costs of fishing exceeded the value of the world’s catch by about US$ 40 billion at the beginning of the decade. Statistics on equity are less available, but the necessary spread of limited access to fisheries frequently has the greatest impact on the small scale, traditional fisher. This paper considers the reasons underlying the general failure of fisheries management and the solutions that are being proposed. Factors contributing to the problems include high biological uncertainty, conflict between the constraint of sustainability and social and economic priorities, poorly defined objectives, and institutional failures related to access rights and participation in management by the users. These issues point to the real complexity of fisheries management. It is argued that this complexity can be abused by all interest groups to avoid responsibility and to suit their own objectives. It is suggested that there are eight simple principles controlling fisheries management that are generally well‐understood and, if properly considered in fisheries management systems, would lead to improved performances. Responsible management will, however, only be effective if there is a genuine desire to achieve the objectives. Fishing capacity, frequently reflecting dependency of users on fisheries resources, is commonly in excess of the sustainable production of the resources. Excess dependency can preclude the political will to consider alternative strategies and only once it has been overcome, probably requiring solutions borrowed from outside fisheries, is effective management likely to be considered seriously. Thereafter, responsible management requires setting unambiguous objectives and management measures in co‐operation with users and other interest groups. The agreed strategy must be included in legislation to ensure transparency and accountability and to constrain decision‐makers. The performance of the strategy must be monitored and revised as necessary.     

The political ecology of gear bans in two fisheries: Florida's net ban and Alaska's Salmon wars

Parametric management in fisheries, which describes the management of how, where and when fishing occurs, is often essential for achieving sustainability. Changes to these parameters likely have impacts on stakeholders, however, for example through the costs and allocative consequences of spatial restrictions or gear changes. Here, I discuss two cases where gear bans have been implemented or proposed in response to conservation concerns: the commercial net ban enacted in Florida in 1995 and the failed ban on set gill‐nets in parts of Alaska. The two cases are remarkably similar, although the outcomes were quite different because of the social context of each fishery. Lessons from the Florida ban, which resulted in numerous negative social and ecological impacts, are informative regarding the impacts that likely would have accompanied the Alaska ban, had it proceeded. In both cases, the gear bans have had or were poised to have notable impacts on allocation, but scientific evidence for their necessity was limited. These cases show how ethical considerations can be inseparable from the ecological aspects of managing fisheries, and that when communities grapple with the sustainability of fisheries, they are simultaneously seeking to define the socially acceptable uses of those resources. I suggest a set of questions that can be asked when proposing parametric changes to fisheries, including how those changes will impact social well‐being and community resilience. These are questions that I argue must be addressed if both ethical and sustainable fisheries are the goal.     

Ecoviability for ecosystem‐based fisheries management

Reconciling food security, economic development and biodiversity conservation is a key challenge, especially in the face of the demographic transition characterizing many countries in the world. Fisheries and marine ecosystems constitute a difficult application of this bio‐economic challenge. Many experts and scientists advocate an ecosystem approach to manage marine socio‐ecosystems for their sustainability and resilience. However, the ways by which to operationalize ecosystem‐based fisheries management (EBFM) remain poorly specified. We propose a specific methodological framework—viability modelling—to do so. We show how viability modelling can be applied using four contrasted case‐studies: two small‐scale fisheries in South America and Pacific and two larger‐scale fisheries in Europe and Australia. The four fisheries are analysed using the same modelling framework, structured around a set of common methods, indicators and scenarios. The calibrated models are dynamic, multispecies and multifleet and account for various sources of uncertainty. A multicriteria evaluation is used to assess the scenarios’ outcomes over a long time horizon with different constraints based on ecological, social and economic reference points. Results show to what extent the bio‐economic and ecosystem risks associated with the adoption of status quo strategies are relatively high and challenge the implementation of EBFM. In contrast, strategies called ecoviability or co‐viability strategies, that aim at satisfying the viability constraints, reduce significantly these ecological and economic risks and promote EBFM. The gains associated with those ecoviability strategies, however, decrease with the intensity of regulations imposed on these fisheries.     

Multidimensional and intertemporal sustainability assessment: A case study of the Basque trawl fisheries

The aim of this paper is to analyse the sustainability of fisheries exploitation through taking into account both the multidisciplinary and intertemporal dimension of the Basque trawl fisheries. The Rapfish methodology is used for the analysis of the ecological, economic and technological sustainability of the Basque trawl fisheries between 1992 and 2003. In accordance with what has been observed in other Rapfish studies, the analysis shows that the contribution towards sustainability depends on many different attributes. Moreover, given that the results obtained are consistent with what other bioeconomic models predict, the technique is postulated as a complementary tool for defining justifiable policy recommendations and fishery management options.     

Elasmobranch fisheries in the Arabian Seas Region: Characteristics,trade and management

The Arabian Seas Region plays an important role in the global landings and trade of sharks and rays. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Yemen, two countries with stark socio‐economic differences, serve as major regional trade hubs for shark and ray products and four countries (Oman, Pakistan, UAE and Yemen) supply nearly 11% of dried fin exports to Hong Kong. Yet, little information is available on the characteristics of this trade and the fisheries contributing to it. Here, we review the fisheries characteristics, trade, utilization and distribution chain of sharks and rays in 15 countries of the Arabian Seas Region based on published and grey literature, landing surveys, field observations and interviews with fishermen and traders. Although regional shark fisheries remain mostly artisanal, reported shark and ray landings represent 28% of the regional total fish production, reaching 56,074 mt in 2012 (7.3% of total world catches), with Iran, Oman, Pakistan and Yemen ranking as the primary catchers. Utilization and distribution patterns are complex, vary between landing sites and countries, and remain unmonitored. Based on widespread over‐exploitation of most teleost fisheries, current exploitation levels for most sharks and rays are potentially unsustainable. The situation is exacerbated by limited research and political will to support policy development, the incomplete nature of fisheries data, as well as insufficient regulations and enforcement. A better understanding of shark and ray fisheries will be key for regulating trade, promoting conservation and developing management initiatives to secure food security, livelihoods and biodiversity conservation in the region.     

Catching the future: Applying Bayesian belief networks to exploratory scenario storylines to assess long‐term changes in Baltic herring (Clupea harengus membras,Clupeidae) and salmon (Salmo salar,Salmonidae) fisheries

Fisheries management aims to ensure that the fishing activities are environmentally sustainable in the long term, while also achieving the economic, social and food security related management objectives. To facilitate this, both the ecological and human dimensions of sustainability need to be included in fisheries assessment. In addition, assessing long‐term sustainability calls for taking into account plausible changes in the surrounding societal conditions that shape the characteristics of the fisheries governance system, as well as the ecological conditions. The paper uses a combination of qualitative exploratory scenario storylines (ESS) and Bayesian belief networks (BBN) to integrate the environmental, economic, social and food security dimensions in an interdisciplinary assessment of the future sustainability of Baltic herring (Clupea harengus membras, Clupeidae) and salmon (Salmo salar, Salmonidae) fisheries. First, four alternative ESS were created based on plausible changes in societal drivers. The ESS were then formulated into a BBN to (a) visualize the assumed causalities, and (b) examine quantitatively how changes in the societal drivers affect the social‐ecological fisheries system and ultimately the fisheries management objectives. This type of probabilistic scenario synthesis can help in thinking qualitative scenarios in a quantitative way. Moreover, it can increase understanding on the causal links between societal driving forces and the complex fisheries system and on how the management objectives can be achieved, thereby providing valuable information for strategic decision‐making under uncertainty.     

Fishermen's perception on the sustainability of small‐scale fisheries and dolphin–fisheries interactions in two increasingly fragile coastal ecosystems in western Greece

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Early effects of COVID‐19 on US fisheries and seafood consumption

The US seafood sector is susceptible to shocks, both because of the seasonal nature of many of its domestic fisheries and its global position as a top importer and exporter of seafood. However, many data sets that could inform science and policy during an emerging event do not exist or are only released months or years later. Here, we synthesize multiple data sources from across the seafood supply chain, including unconventional real‐time data sets, to show the relative initial responses and indicators of recovery during the COVID‐19 pandemic. We synthesized news articles from January to September 2020 that reported effects of COVID‐19 on the US seafood sector, including processor closures, shortened fishing seasons and loss of revenue. Concerning production and distribution, we assessed past and present landings and trade data and found substantial declines in fresh seafood catches (?40%), imports (?37%) and exports (?43%) relative to the previous year, while frozen seafood products were generally less affected. Google search trends and seafood market foot traffic data suggest consumer demand for seafood from restaurants dropped by upwards of 70% during lockdowns, with recovery varying by state. However, these declines were partially offset by an increase (270%) in delivery and takeout service searches. Our synthesis of open‐access data sets and media reports shows widespread, but heterogeneous, ramifications of COVID‐19 across the seafood sector, implying that policymakers should focus support on states and sub‐sectors most affected by the pandemic: fishery‐dependent communities, processors, and fisheries and aquaculture that focus on fresh products.     

Fuel consumption of global fishing fleets: current understanding and knowledge gaps

Compared to a century ago, the world's fishing fleets are larger and more powerful, are travelling further and are producing higher quality products. These developments come largely at a cost of high‐fossil fuel energy inputs. Rising energy prices, climate change and consumer demand for ‘green’ products have placed energy use and emissions among the sustainability criteria of food production systems. We have compiled all available published and unpublished fuel use data for fisheries targeting all species, employing all gears and fishing in all regions of the world into a Fisheries and Energy Use Database (FEUD). Here, we present results of our analysis of the relative energy performance of fisheries since 1990 and provide an overview of the current state of knowledge on fuel inputs to diverse fishing fleets. The median fuel use intensity of global fishery records since 1990 is 639 litres per tonne. Fuel inputs to fisheries vary by several orders of magnitude, with small pelagic fisheries ranking among the world's most efficient forms of animal protein production and crustaceans ranking among the least efficient. Trends in Europe and Australia since the beginning of the 21st century suggest fuel use efficiency is improving, although this has been countered by a more rapid increase in oil prices. Management decisions, technological improvements and behavioural changes can further reduce fuel consumption in the short term, although the most effective improvement to fisheries energy performance will come as a result of rebuilding stocks where they are depressed and reducing over‐capacity.     

When large marine predators feed on fisheries catches: Global patterns of the depredation conflict and directions for coexistence

The sustainable mitigation of human–wildlife conflicts has become a major societal and environmental challenge globally. Among these conflicts, large marine predators feeding on fisheries catches, a behaviour termed “depredation,” has emerged concomitantly with the expansion of the world’s fisheries. Depredation poses threats to both the socio‐economic viability of fisheries and species conservation, stressing the need for mitigation. This review synthesizes the extent and socio‐ecological impacts of depredation by sharks and marine mammals across the world, and the various approaches used to minimize it. Depredation was reported in 214 fisheries between 1979 and 2019 (70% post‐2000) and affected fleets from 44 countries, in all sectors (commercial, artisanal and recreational), and in all major fishing techniques (nets, traps and hook‐and‐lines). A total of 68 predator species were involved in depredation (20 odontocetes, 21 pinnipeds and 27 sharks), and most (73%) were subject to either by‐catch and/or retaliatory killing from fishers when interacting with gear. Impacts on fishers were primarily associated with catch losses and gear damage but often lacked assessments. Deterrence was a major mitigation approach but also the least effective. Gear modifications or behavioural adaptation by fishers were more promising. This review highlights the need for improved monitoring, and interdisciplinary and integrated research to quantify the determinants and impacts of depredation in the socio‐ecological dimension. More importantly, as the conflict is likely to escalate, efforts directed towards changing perceptions and integrating knowledge through adaptive co‐management are raised as key directions towards coexistence between fisheries and large marine predators.     

Understanding pressures on fishery resources through trade statistics: a pilot study of four products in the Chinese dried seafood market

This study investigates the dried seafood trade, centred in Chinese markets, in order to better understand the pressures its demand exerts on global marine resource stocks. Using Hong Kong, the region's largest entrepôt, as a focal point, the trade in shark fins, abalone, bêche‐de‐mer and dried fish is characterized in terms of product history, volume, source fisheries and species composition. Trends identified in the Hong Kong market are interpreted in the context of the larger Chinese market. Shark fin imports grew 6% per year between 1991 and 2000, most likely because of market expansion in Mainland China, posing increasingly greater pressures on global shark resources. In contrast, the quantities of dried abalone traded through Hong Kong remained steady, but inferences based on this trend are discouraged by suggestions of increasing preferences for fresh product forms and growing domestic production in Mainland China. Hong Kong's imports of dried bêche‐de‐mer (sea cucumber) have decreased, while the percentage of imports re‐exported has remained steady, suggesting that Hong Kong continues as an entrepôt for Mainland China despite declining domestic consumption. Few conclusions can be drawn regarding dried fish products, including whole fish and fish maws, because of a lack of product differentiation in customs data, but a market survey was conducted to provide information on species composition. Comparison of Hong Kong dried seafood trade statistics to those of other key trading partners indicates that, in general, Hong Kong's duty‐free status appears to encourage more accurate reporting of traded quantities. Under‐reporting biases ranged from 24 to 49% for shark fin and bêche‐de‐mer, respectively. Comparison to United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) databases indicates additional under‐reporting for shark fin such that an alternative minimum estimate of world trade is at least twice the FAO estimates in 1998–2000. The results of a survey of Hong Kong traders provide insight into their attitudes toward harvest, economic and regulatory factors, and suggest that conservation efforts are unlikely to emerge from, or be actively supported by, dried seafood trade organizations. The market's apparent sensitivity to economic sentiment, however, reveals an opportunity for consumer education to play a role in shaping future market growth and resource conservation. Recommendations are provided for improving trade statistics and for developing better analytical techniques to complement traditional methods for monitoring the exploitation and management of fisheries resources.