Obama: How Will He “Change” Tuna? ff

By Atuna

Barack Obama took power yesterday as President of United States of America, one of the top 3 tuna consuming countries.

The new President speech’s central motto - also continuously used during his presidential campaign - is: “The change that we need”.


Barack Obama

It will be interesting to see which changes the new Obama administration will bring about in regard to the tuna sector.

Obama’s pick for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Lisa Jackson, claims that “science must be at the backbone of what EPA does (…) I will administer with science as my guide”.

According to Mrs. Jackson, President-elect Obama has affirmed two core values that he expects the EPA to uphold during his administration: “scientific integrity and the rule of law”.

Barack Obama will have the opportunity to impose economic sanctions on seafood products associated with IUU and bycatch in two years.

The last tuna RFMO’s meetings were quite disappointing by not reducing fishing on several vulnerable tuna stocks, as recommended by their own scientific committees. Also RFMO’s efforts to battle IUU fishing are generally considered to be failing in most oceans.

According to the Proposed Rule to Implement Identification and Certification of IUU Fishing Activities and Bycatch of Protected Living Marine Resources, running now in the U.S. Congress, scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) can recommend the President to cease trade with countries negatively certified by the institution.

Barack Obama’s promises of economic and environmental changes may very much benefit the tuna industry, not only by assuring financial stability, but also by securing a sustainable raw material supply that feeds the business.