A new report from the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) indicates a near 50-50 split between Pacific salmon fisheries that are sustainable, and those that aren’t.
The report, the first edition of SFP’s sustainability overview of Pacific salmon fisheries, shows that only 51 percent of the global supply of wild Pacific salmon comes from what it called “fisheries in good shape,” or using sustainable fishing practices. The remaining 49 percent of the Pacific salmon fisheries worldwide, according to the report, are “in need of significant improvements.”
“Wild salmon sustainability has been a huge topic of concern for the seafood industry over the last year,” said Jim Cannon, SFP’s CEO. “The variation among salmon fisheries highlights the need to have detailed sourcing information, and emphasizes the role robust certification schemes can play in the market.”
The report covers all five commercial species of Pacific salmon — Chinook, chum, coho, pink and sockeye. The report indicated “the large majority” of the good salmon fisheries were in Alaska, but both good and bad fisheries were scattered throughout the salmon-producing regions, including Alaska, British Columbia, Canada, Russia, Japan, and the U.S. Pacific northwest.
While a large number of the fisheries are being assessed for Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) sustainability, the report found only 7 percent are actually MSC certified for the 2013 season.
The SFP report also called potential impact of salmon hatcheries on wild salmon “a leading sustainability concern,” and found that research and monitoring for such impact “largely inadequate in most areas.”
