The Mexican tuna fleet has caught around 115,000 tons of tuna until September 2005, which represents 27,000 tons more than during the same period last year.
Data provided by the National Program for Tuna Exploitation and Dolphin Protection indicate that 114,938 tons of tuna were captured from January until September in the Pacific coasts while catches reached 87,000 during this same period last year.
These figures already indicate that there has been sufficient tuna landed to cover the Mexican consumption requirements, which reach at lease 110,000 tons each year for national consumption. This increase also reveals that the Mexican tuna sector will not have to purchase tuna in other countries in order to supply its domestic market as it did last year.
Moreover, this year the Mexican fleet will go to port from November 15th till end December 2005 as part of the IATTC ban. Last year the ban resulted in
During the first six months of this year the Mexican tuna fleet performed in a somewhat better way than it did during the same period of 2004, with a slight increase in the landings at the ports of Mazatlan Sinaloa,
Mexican catches during the third quarter improved strongly due to the great amount of feed for tuna-like species, such as sardine and anchoveta, which attracted more yellowfin tuna.
During part of the third quarter the many other vessels in the