Tháng mười một 19, 2020

World’s biggest fish market in Tokyo hit hard by COVID-19

[:en]It\’s been two years since Tokyo\’s historic Tsukiji fish market closed its doors and made a costly $5 billion move to the city\’s outskirts. Now called \”Toyosu,\” the new market is almost twice as large, but the 600 or so merchants that moved with it have been struggling with low sales numbers. The pandemic has been the latest blow in a series of uphill battles. Tuna auction in Toyosu market in Tokyo. /CGTN \”In terms of operation, there are more cons than pros,\” said Toshiyuki Kawame, who owns a tuna wholesale shop in Toyosu. \”Access is really bad. By public transport, it takes twice as much time to get here than it would to get to our old location in Tsukiji.\” COVID-19 has meant that sales have halved for the already suffering businesses. Seafood consumption in Japan has been steadily in decline, and fishermen also saw unexpectedly poor seasonal catches in the past few years. The new site also came with complications. Once home to a gas plant, toxic substances were found in the soil and groundwater at Toyosu before the launch. Additional clean-up measures meant more costs and a longer delay before the big move. But experts say the move itself was necessary. A closed, self-contained facility, Toyosu boasts improved hygiene and temperature management controls compared to Tsukiji. A view of the building of Toyosu market in Tokyo. /CGTN \”The buildings and the facilities in Tsukiji were simply getting too old,\” said Masahiko Ariji, a professor at Kindai University. \”Little fixes were made to maintain the market, but a significant overhaul wasn\’t possible because it was such a crucial market that needed to be working every day. Toyosu fulfills the global standards of hygiene and supply, so I think it was right to move the market there.\” In Tsukiji, an outer market still exists, adjacent to the site where the former wholesale market used to be. There, restaurants and retail shops left behind are still coping with the aftermath. \”Tsukiji\’s market still has the traditional small shops there, but honestly, I suspect that someday that market will become a part of history, and that whole area will be absorbed into the business district,\” said Ariji. With the wholesale market gone, foot traffic in the area has cut down significantly. Tuna on display at Toyosu Market in Tokyo. /CGTN \”After the market moved to Toyosu, we\’ve been getting about one third the usual amount of customers,\” said Kouji Sugawara, a worker at Maruta foods, a food stall in Tsukiji. Merchants there say COVID-19 has felt like a nail in the coffin. \”I can\’t even put into words how defeated we feel by the coronavirus. If only this didn\’t exist, we were still getting by despite the market moving,\” said Sugawara. Their only hope is that Japan opens its doors to international travelers soon, so that much-needed tourists can help revive the markets. Those in Toyosu are hoping the Olympics might help too. \”I hope that the Olympics can be held safely, and that it\’ll be possible to have tourists again,\” said Kawame. \”It would be good for our hotels and restaurants, I really hope it\’ll happen.\” https://news.cgtn.com/ Tuna Steak [:]

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Act Now to Save Indian Ocean Yellowfin Tuna from Overfishing

Market pressure and an Australian proposal could shift policy at upcoming IOTC meeting According to new data from the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC), overfishing of yellowfin tuna in that region continues, despite the fact that the species has been classified as overfished since 2015, and has been the subject of a rebuilding plan since 2016. Although last year’s catch of yellowfin was down from 2018, it was still more than 100,000 metric tons, or approximately 25% higher than what scientists say is needed to have even a 50% chance of rebuilding the population by 2027. These sobering numbers show that the IOTC, at this year’s Nov. 2-6 virtual annual meeting, must adopt a more robust plan to rebuild yellowfin and strengthen management. IOTC’s yellowfin management is complicated because more than 30 members are involved in the fishery and half of the overall catch comes from smaller scale artisanal fishing—a subsector with distinct management priorities. And some developing coastal State members want higher catch limits to help grow their fishing industries. Further,  industrial vessels, such as purse seiners, which use fish aggregating devices (FADs) to attract huge schools of fish. This increases the pressure not only on yellowfin, but on skipjack and bigeye tunas, which are also drawn to FADs and caught in high numbers. Unfortunately, IOTC has few compliance measures in place to stop overharvesting of yellowfin, so to date, it has had little success at ending overfishing. There is the potential for change, however. Some of the world’s biggest seafood retailers, concerned about the mismanagement of the Indian Ocean yellowfin population, are cutting the amount they buy in a direct bid to pressure IOTC to act. The Global Tuna Alliance, a network of retailers and supply chain companies, is urging a 25% reduction in catch (compared to 2017 levels), and several EU and UK-based retailers and brands, including Tesco, Co-op, Princes, and the Colruyt Group, are boycotting Indian Ocean yellowfin until an improved recovery plan is in place. In 2018, the end value of Indian Ocean yellowfin was more than US$4 billion, making it one of the world’s most valuable fisheries, and the dock value—or the amount paid to fishers—was more than US$1.5 billion. With this market pressure on the commission and its member States, a real recovery plan may be on the horizon. Fortunately, science offers a clear path forward for sensible yellowfin management: adoption—and enforcement—of a precautionary, science-based management procedure, also known as a harvest strategy. This is a pre-agreed decision-making framework that shifts management away from short-term, annual negotiations to a long-term plan based on set objectives; in the case of Indian Ocean yellowfin, the highest priority objective should be to rebuild the population. Having a strong procedure in place would increase the efficiency and effectiveness of management, and enable IOTC to guide the stock through rebuilding and then maintain a sustainable, profitable, and stable fishery. Australia has led a proposed yellowfin management procedure for discussion at this year’s annual meeting, with the aim of adoption in 2021. If agreed to, it will be a landmark moment for IOTC and yellowfin and will help start recovery for this important species. It is critical that IOTC move forward with this management procedure and begin the difficult work of rebuilding yellowfin tuna in earnest. It is not only necessary for the health of the species and the ocean, but also to secure the value of this billion-dollar industry and the well-being of those who depend on a healthy fishery for income and job security.

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