Tuna industry players here committed to adopt various sustainable fishing practices as part of the country’s participation in the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) that was tasked to manage the dwindling tuna resources in the western and central
Marfenio Tan, president of the Soccsksargen Federation of Fishing Associations and Allied Industries Inc., said they have started discussions with officials of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) regarding the implementation of its fishing regulations on tuna fleets based in this city.
He said WCPFC officials led by its Executive Director Andrew Wright visited the city last month to consult local tuna stakeholders and explore possible linkages regarding the development of the tuna industry in the Pacific area.
Wright also met with officials of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) that earlier helped map out various strategies regarding the country's participation in the WCPFC.
â€It provided an opportunity for us to exchange views with the commission about important issues that have been affecting the tuna industry in the region and also in the global scene,†Tan said.
Tan, who also heads the World Tuna Purse Seine Organization, said the discussed the continuing illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing practices along the western and central Pacific Ocean and concerns on the available supply of yellowfin and bigeye tuna in relation to the present fishing activities.
He said they also clarified some issues regarding the capacity of the purse seine fleet operating along the western and central
During the consultations, Tan said Wright vowed to look into the worsening problem of the local tuna industry regarding the skyrocketing fuel costs.
Such problem was earlier cited by the industry as among the factors that forces some fishing operators to temporarily slow down in their operations.
The local tuna handline fishermen, which rely mainly on pump boats in their operations, was cited as among those that was hit hardest by the high fuel prices.
Aside from these, Tan said they held talks regarding the pricing of raw material that are supplied to canned tuna processors, the development of the fishery industries in the Pacific Island countries.
â€We also evaluated some issues associated with the dependence on aggregating devices and agreed to intensify the efforts to improve the collection of information from local tuna fleets that are operating within and beyond our exclusive economic zone,†he said.
The Commission earlier vowed to check the rampant under-reporting of tuna catches by fishing fleets of several countries, including the
The WCPFC management mandated its member-nations to submit accurate reports of tuna catches to properly monitor the utilization of the area's fishery resources.
Stanley Swerdloff, senior fisheries advisor of development think-tank Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM) program, said that before such regulation came out, most local fishing fleets allegedly manipulate the reports about their tuna catches for tax considerations.
In 2003, Swerdloff said official government data showed that only 40 per cent of the actual catch was reported in this city by the tuna fishing fleets.
He said such flaw was affirmed by sources within the local tuna industry.
The WCPFC estimated the total annual catch of tuna and tuna-like species by Philippine fishing fleets at the western and central
The General Santos fishing port complex alone accounts for about 90,000 tons of fish and marine products, 80 per cent of which are tuna and tuna-like species that are delivered annually by the local fishing vessels.
The combined annual exports of Philippine the tuna industry, with more than 100,000 people behind it, over the last few years are valued at US$280 million, or over P14 billion.
The canned tuna sector contributes about two-thirds, with a combined annual export of $180 million from the eight tuna canneries in the country. Six of these canneries are situated in this city, the other two in
More than 80 percent of the produce of the canneries, which employ 16,000 people, are exported to the
Agriculture Secretary Domingo Panganiban has acknowledged the importance of the tuna industry to the Philippine economy. He placed the value of the Philippine tuna industry at about $420 million.
Annual tuna landings in the country is at 400,000 metric tons, thanks to the 4,000 large and small boats fishing in the country’s waters and beyond.
Industry records showed there are 70 large purse seiners and 350 service boats fishing; 200 small and medium purse seiners plus 800 service boats; and 2,500 outrigger boats operated by hand line fishermen.
The traditional handline tuna sector employs around 30,000 jobs, said Marfenio Tan, head of the federation.
Yet another major sector in the tuna industry are the frozen tuna processors. There are more than 15 of these plants in the country, most of them based in this city. They employ about 12,000 people.
The tuna industry in the country began to surge in the 1990s with the rapid development of support facilities here in GenSan. Foremost of which is the General Santos City Fish Port Complex, which is currently undergoing expansion works. The complex now has a 750-meter quay for 2,000-gross ton ships, large cold storage facilities and ice plant that could produce 60 tons a day.