New Zealand seafood industry calls on Kiwis

New Zealand seafood industry calls on Kiwis to celebrate World Ocean’s Day 2010

The New Zealand seafood industry is calling on Kiwis to help celebrate World Ocean’s Day 2010 (June 8) by sharing in the commitment the industry has to our oceans.

World Ocean’s Day should be a celebration particularly for New Zealanders - not only do we have the best seafood in the world, but it is produced under the best sustainable fisheries management in the world, says New Zealand Seafood Industry Council chief executive Owen Symmans.
World Ocean’s Day was officially declared by the United Nations as June 8, each year beginning in 2009. The day is an opportunity to honour the world’s ocean, celebrate the products the ocean provides, such as seafood, and our marine environment.

Last year, for the first official World Ocean’s Day, the Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon said in his speech that the day allows us to highlight the many ways in which oceans contribute to society.

Mr Symmans says for the New Zealand seafood industry this means providing a healthy product to all New Zealanders that is harvested sustainably and contributes more than $4 billion to our economy annually.

However, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon also said in 2009 that human activities are taking a toll on the world’s oceans and seas. “Vulnerable marine ecosystems such as corals, and important fisheries are being damaged by over-exploitation, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, destructive fishing practices, invasive alien species and marine pollution, especially from land-based sources.”

But all New Zealanders can be confident that its seafood industry is leading the world in environmental practice and the sustainable harvest of seafood.

In 2009, international and independent research rated New Zealand’s fishery as the most sustainable in the world, equal only with Alaska. This research (‘Rebuilding Global Fisheries' published in the international journal Science) was lead by two eminent scientists, Boris Worm and Professor Ray Hilborn and was big news for New Zealand. It proved what the industry and government had known all along, that our quota management system is world leading in fisheries management. Fishers like to say: “We fish in a way today, so that we can continue to fish tomorrow, and in the future.”

New Zealand was singled out in the research as an area where eco-systems have never been overfished and are effectively managed.
"The research clearly showed that New Zealand has successfully managed its fisheries for ecological sustainability - and this is exceptional," Mr Symmans said.
According to the authors' media release New Zealand and Alaska have led the world in terms of management success by not waiting until drastic measures are needed to conserve, restore and re-build resources.
“The fundamental reason that many groups are working to ensure good management of the world’s fisheries is to ensure a secure source of food now and in the future. This is a day for New Zealanders to be proud – we have the fourth largest water zone in the world, we have independent research that repeatedly gets the highest rating for sustainable fisheries performance globally, we have fantastic quality of product, we have a nation of people who benefit from the significant returns, and we have fisheries that are the envy of the world – both commercial and recreational. ”

Mr Symmans also said that New Zealanders can be rightfully proud of leading the world in how to manage fisheries. “To top it off, our country has secured that food source with its commitment to the QMS (quota management system) run by the Government. The industry is utterly committed to ensuring fisheries in the long term. After all, those with the most to lose if New Zealand’s fisheries should ever become unsustainable are the fishers.

"I think all New Zealanders can be very proud of the international recognition of the state of our fisheries and ecosystems and the way we responsibly manage them. It has been an effective collaboration between industry, government and the nation."
But this certainly isn’t the end of the story says Mr Symmans.

“Our industry invests in ensuring that we have the best by-catch mitigation methods possible to ensure species who share our marine environment are safe. We have voluntarily closed more than 30 per cent of the nation’s exclusive economic zone to bottom trawling. These areas are known as Benthic Protection Areas (BPAs) and are closed to bottom trawl fishing methods, including dredging, forever. These areas comprise more than 1.2million km2 of seabed, which is more than four times New Zealand’s land area.

“We also have a commitment to doing our bit to help climate change. The New Zealand seafood industry's focus on increasing energy efficiency is part of its ongoing commitment to sustainability.

“There is no doubt about it - the seafood industry is highly energy intensive. It is heavily dependent on the use of liquid fuels. Energy forms a significant proportion of operating costs which, with fuel price increases, are growing. However, it still rates well below most other food production industries in terms of CO2 footprint and biodiversity (Professor Hilborn, from Washington University, USA, has evaluated published research into the effects on the environment of protein production (including farming animals on land and catching wild fish). He found that on average, commercial fishing had a lesser impact on the environment than land-based animal farming.

“And that is why a focus on energy efficiency has dual incentives for the industry - it is good for the environment and it's good for business.

“Our seafood industry and the people who work within it have a strong commitment to quality, sustainability and the environment, and that commitment is ongoing. Our success to date certainly doesn’t mean we will sit back on our laurels. This is why all New Zealander’s have good reason to celebrate World Ocean’s Day 2010,” says Mr Symmans.

ENDS

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