Source: Agencia Peruana de Noticias
The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) granted Peru an additional 5,000 cubic meters of quota capacity for tuna fishing in the waters of the country, which added to the 3,195 cubic meters it had so far, Peru will no have a total of 8,195 cubic meters.
According to the Minister of Production, Mr. Luis Nava, this new total cubic meters will allow 13 vessels to fish tuna, depending on their ability to hold.
The vessels benefited from this measure should be Peruvian flagged and operate within 200 nautical miles and inside the country’s exclusive economic zone.
The IATTC regulates the tuna haulage capacity for a group of Member States, which Peru joined in 2002, when its fleet was awarded a capacity of 3,195 cubic meters, although the country was seeking to obtain 14,046 cubic meters. In 2008 and 2009, Peru again requested to increase to the expected capacity, however unsuccessfully.
According to Nava, the IATTC did not approve a quota of 14,046 cubic meters because there is not much tuna available in the world and the list of applicants is very large.
He said that Peru is the only country –out of 20 members of IATTC- that requested an increase in fleet capacity and obtained an additional quota.
“Our right has been recognized and now Peru can develop a tuna fishing fleet and use the tuna caught for the population’s consumption and feeding,†said Produce head.
One of the reasons considered to request the increase was the need to aim the tuna catch for the population’s food security.
“Currently, we have 3,195 cubic meters, but extra 5,000 were requested and granted because what we had was not enough considering the tuna existence in our waters, in which over 50,000 tons are caught,†explained the minister.