Peru’s Ministry of Production (PRODUCE) has authorized a 28 November start of the second season of the north-central zone’s anchovy fishery, establishing a total allowable catch (TAC) of up to 2.28 million metric tons (MT).
The country’s anchovy fishery, which targets both Engraulis ringens and Anchoa nasus, primarily for use in making fishmeal and fish oil, is the largest by volume in the world. The north-central zone fishing season will come to a close once the TAC is reached or whenever Imarpe, the Peruvian agency in charge of regulating the fishery, recommends it due to environmental or biological considerations. Imarpe is a technical agency within PRODUCE that advises the state on marine conservation issues and that performs studies to evaluate the status of the Peruvian anchovy biomass.
Peru divides its anchovy fishing areas into two regions – south and north-central – with different capture limits and seasons set for each. The north-central is Peru’s main fishing region, with capture measuring several times that of the south region.
Peru caught 5.1 million MT of anchovy in 2021. For the first fishing season in the north-central region, Peru's total anchoveta landings reached 2.34 million MT – or 84.06 percent of the TAC.
In July, PRODUCE opened the second anchovy fishing season of the year in the country's south region, setting a TAC of 486,500 MT. That season is slated to run through December, or until the TAC is reached, whichever comes first.
Peru is expected to surpass USD 2 billion (EUR 1.93 billion) this year in earnings from exports of fishmeal and fish oil, compared to USD 2.3 billion (EUR 2.2 billion) in 2021 – which was up 60 percent from 2020, Peruvian government news service Andina recently reported, citing figures from Peru’s National Fisheries Society (SNP).
Photo courtesy of CeDePesca
