Rates of overfishing in both the Mediterranean and Black seas are continuing to fall, with the percentage of stocks deemed overexploited now falling below 60 percent in the region for the first time, according to the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM).
According to a recent GFCM publication titled “The State of Mediterranean and Black Sea Fisheries (SoMFi) 2023,” that fishing pressure is still twice the level considered sustainable.
However, it is clear that positive progress is being made, GFCM Senior Fishery Officer Elisabetta Betulla Morello told SeafoodSource.
She explained that in 2023 alone, there was a 15 percent drop in overfishing year over year and a 31 percent dip compared to 2012 figures.
“SoMFi 2023 demonstrates that the GFCM’s continued focus on expanding adaptive multiannual management plans and adopting combinations of input/output measures along with technical and spatial measures is having positive results for key commercial species,” Morello said.
More specifically, stocks of ...
