The Spanish General Secretariat of Spanish Fishery reported that this year’s Atlantic Albacore campaign, which is about to conclude, has been the best campaign of the decade thanks to its large volume of captures. Nevertheless, the abundance did not compensate the price crisis that the almost 70 Galician tuna vessels, which are participating in this seasonal fishery, are currently facing. In fact, the low profit has obliged several boats to quit.
The Atlantic Albacore campaign will not be over until mid-October. Nevertheless, the Secretariat of Fishery already announced the data regarding the quantities of tuna unloadings made in the different regions so far. The complete Cantabrian area reached 18,873 tons, while Euskadi (Basque Country) leads with 10,171 tons, followed by
Fishing leaders of Burela, the Galician port where most of the tuna sales take place, insist on the poor income despite the favorable Atlantic Albacore campaign. Almost every Galician tuna fishing boat caught more tuna than last year, however at the end obtained less income because of a 20% drop in market prices and an increase of operational costs due to scarce fuel availability.