Today “The Campaign for Eco-Safe Tuna†launched an international effort to promote a more sustainable approach to tuna fishing and truth-in-labeling. By educating consumers about the true nature of current tuna fishing and labeling practices, the Campaign for Eco-Safe Tuna seeks to ensure that not only dolphins, but sharks, marine turtles, seabirds, juvenile tuna and other vulnerable species, are not unnecessarily harmed during the fishing process.
The Campaign for Eco-Safe Tuna believes in a world where fishing for tuna need not be synonymous with damaging the environment. Many fishing fleets still rely on unsustainable fishing methods, such as fish aggregating devices (FADs), despite the devastating amounts of by-catch and damage to the marine ecosystem caused by such methods. Even more troubling, current U.S. regulations on tuna fishing do not meet either consumer expectations or international standards for ensuring that no dolphins are killed or seriously injured.
As part of the effort, the campaign has created a website (www.ecosafetuna.org) to provide environmentally-minded consumers with information on sustainable fishing practices, the latest science, reports and studies, information about the costs and impact of the current U.S. ‘dolphin-safe’ labeling practices, resources to take action and much more. Over the coming weeks and months, the Campaign for Eco-Safe tuna will undertake a series of initiatives to protect the entire marine ecosystem and promote eco-safe tuna fishing practices.
Eco-Safe Tuna is an international effort committed to a more sustainable approach to tuna fishing. We advocate for new labeling rules in the United States and around the world to promote an eco-friendly approach to tuna fishing and ensure that consumers are no longer misled about false claims by current ‘dolphin-safe’ labels.
On its website www.ecosafetuna.org the organization has a page named the ‘Tuna Truth Squad’ where it writes: “The fact is that the current U.S. ‘dolphin-safe’ label regime is deceptive to consumers. Consumers are being misled about the true dolphin-safe label. The WTO pointed to scientific evidence showing that thousands of dolphins are being killed or seriously injured in the tuna fisheries that supply 98% of the canned tuna to the U.S. market. Yet virtually all of that tuna is labeled ‘dolphin-safe’. Some Members of Congress say that Mexico should conform to the fishing methods used by the U.S. and Ecuador fishing fleets and fish on fish aggregating devices (FADs), which Greenpeace, Pew Environment Group and several other governmental and non-governmental organizations have criticized for their unsustainable impact on oceans and marine ecosystems.â€
Eco- Safe tuna will also be using social media and twitter to get in touch with consumers and create awareness about their views on dolphin-safe labeling and tuna by-catch.
From the website it is not clear who the backers and sponsors of the organization are, also no email address or mail address are mentioned. The website does indicate that fishing fleets that support the Campaign for Eco-Safe Tuna have repeatedly demonstrated their commitment to sustainable and eco-safe tuna fishing over the past twenty years by adhering to the La Jolla Agreement and the Agreement on the International Dolphin Conversation Program (AIDCP).
