The Brazilian tuna fleet is postponing its activities until tomorrow to negotiate a 75 percent rise in the price of tuna, from BRL 1.60 (USD 0.45) to BRL 3.00 (USD 0.85) per kilo.
The Brazilian Fishery Workers Union (Sintrapesca) recently took this decision because of the discrepancy between the average tuna price and the sharp rise in the diesel oil price for vessels and maintenance costs.
While the price of tuna dropped from around USD 720 per ton in 1995, to under USD 450 currently.
Meanwhile, the cost of diesel has increased a total of 293 percent over the past eight years, said union leader Manoel Xavier de MarÃa. De MarÃa said vessels would remain in port until an agreement is reached
Itajai’s Fishing Industry Union (Sindipi) president, Antonio Carlos Momm, informed that negotiations with union members for a new tuna price would start on the first working day of 2003, after the holidays. High seas tuna is destined to the tuna canning exclusively.