The Most Productive Seiners: Over-Aggressive “Predators” Or Just Simply Efficient?

Should size, average catch rates, and other characteristics of individual tuna purse seiners and fleets be taken into account when conservation and management measures are set at RFMO level? The industry is divided on this sensitive and complex topic, with some thinking “the same should apply to all”, while others believe tonnage, set types, species, and landings, should all be reviewed, to reward sustainable operations and strongly control more “predatory” fleets.

From ocean to ocean and fleet to fleet there are striking differences between the average annual catches of individual purse seiners. This stems from a range of reasons – the richness of the fishing grounds in which they operate, the type of sets they make (FAD/Free-School), size, access opportunities, the species they target, their technology, and not to forget the skill of the captain and his crew of bringing these elements together in the most optimal way.

Some think that regardless of this, each fishing nation, and each seiner should be subject to the same regulations, and the same limits, putting all on a “level playing field”. Others believe there are “predatory” fleets and RFMOs should control the operations of these with extra force, while those practicing “sustainably” should be rewarded for making this choice.

The WCPO: The World’s Biggest Tuna Catching Ground

In the WCPO, where over 50 percent of the world’s commercial tuna catch is landed, the South Korean fleet, for example, has a drastically higher average yearly catch per purse seiner, than all other operating fleets in the region. Looking at 2014, 2015 and 2016 data, this comes out at 10,507 tons.

In the same region, other major tuna fishing fleets report much lower annual per vessel average catch rates, as can be seen in the table. The Philippine fleet shows the smallest figure.

A representative from one of South Korea’s largest tuna fishing firms believes the higher figure for the fleet is due to the “tight schedule of vessel operation”, claiming that seiners flagged to the country spend less time in port for each discharge, than other fleets.

As well as this, he believes the fleet is strongly supported by supply vessels, which helps to increase the efficiency of each individual seiner. He previously told Atuna that South Korean seiners now make around 50 percent of their sets on FADs, while several years ago this was much lower, at around 20 percent.

A switch to stronger FAD use has obviously boosted the efficiency of the South Korean fleet, as its 2016 catch totals were the highest recorded yet, and therefore resulted in the biggest average total annual catch per purse seiner.

The source does not see the average size of seiners flagged to South Korea as being a potential contributor to the boosted catch levels. This is despite the fact that the nation’s flag flies on some of the largest tuna purse seine vessels globally.

Of the around 25 active tuna purse seiners flagged to Korea on the WCPFC vessel register, almost all have a gross tonnage of over 1,000 M/T, with many reaching towards 2,000 and some peaking over this mark. The much larger purse seiners across all fleets are built for a strong focus on FAD fishing using sonar buoys, and before that for the use of supply vessels. Their size and maneuverability makes it less easy for them to target free schools.

One of the main factors, as well as vessel size, that has a distinct impact on the efficiency of a purse seiner, is the richness of the fishing grounds in which it commonly operates. This can largely determine the chance of success of each individual vessel. In the WCPO as a whole, we see that each purse seiner tends to be much more efficient in terms of catch than those operating in the EPO and other ocean regions.

With over 50 percent of the world skipjack catch coming from the PNA waters within the WCPO, it is clear that this has a solid impact.

For the South Korean fleet, its average per vessel catches are enhanced by its significant access opportunities to the EEZ of PNA island nation, Kiribati. South Korean tuna firms have been given substantial access packages to Kiribati tuna-rich waters, in return for creating joint venture processing facilities in the nation.

During an El Niño year, catches of skipjack in Kiribati waters usually increase, with tuna heading to more eastern zones of the Western Pacific. The focus of the Korean firms on Kiribati is even more strategic than that; the island’s EEZ also borders high seas, where seiners can enjoy free access in the WCPO. This area, in zone and out, is largely known to be a ‘FAD zone’, with less free schooling of fish.

Looking at the data at the other end of the scale, one Philippine boatowner believes the reason Philippine seiners report lower average catch rates is to do with the age of the vessels, more than anything. “They are very old, more than 30 years old per vessel,” he explains. This in turn makes the seiners very slow, travelling at an average speed of around 10-12 knots (18-22 km/h). He compares this to South Korean seiners, commonly reaching speeds of 14-15 knots (26-27 km/h).

As well as this, he claims Philippine boats have smaller nets, due to the fact that many of the vessels themselves are also smaller-sized compared to other WCPO fleets. This can limit the fishing range of the purse seiners flagged to the Asian nation.

Around 65 percent of the fleet has fish holds “from 400 to 600 tons per vessel,” he adds. This means winches are also smaller compared to seiners of other fleets, so they are unable to pull large sets.

The use of FADs is generally determined to make the operations of a purse seiner more efficient when compared to free-school, and the Philippine fleet is known as a pioneer of FAD fishing, with their Payoas. Today they are still largely dependent on this method. Despite this, the boatowner states that mainly due to the size and age of Filipino-flagged seiners, in general “they are less efficient”.

Still, there are some “new vessels and they are performing at par with other fleets,” he explains.

Many Philippine-owned purse seiners have also switched flag to Pacific island nation PNG, due to new government policies implemented by the country. This is likely to explain the relatively similar per vessel catch rate also calculated for PNG-flagged seiners.

Although some fleets have per vessel catch rates that are nearly triple that of Philippine owned seiners, this boatowner believes that when it comes to conservation measures, all fleets should be treated the same, rather than size, catch, and set types being taken into account.

This likely links to the Philippines’ strong use of FADs within its tuna purse seine operations which some WCPFC conservation measures aim to reduce. Regardless of the fact that Filipino seiners are smaller, and are averagely catching less, they are extremely dependent on the method. Very small seiners often find it difficult to chase large schools due to their speed, so they commonly have a much heavier FAD dependency.

The FAD ban in the WCPO impacts the operations of those fleets more commonly setting on FADs. But to date, no per fleet or per vessel FAD limits have been set in this ocean region. The Philippine fleet also enjoys exclusive access to the WCPO high seas pocket 1, all year round, where it can also set on Fish Aggregating Devices. However, this still does not increase the efficiency of its operations to the levels of fleets with much bigger seiners.

The exclusive access to this high seas zone also actually contrasts with what the source says about a level playing field, and all fleets being treated the same. Representatives from other fleets have criticized the WCPFC for its continued allowance of only Filipino seiners in this high seas area, stating it disproportionately benefits them.

Despite this, on the flipside, the Filipino boatowner thinks smaller vessels could be rewarded somewhat in the tuna-rich PNA region of the WCPO, above those seiners of a larger size, normally bringing in higher tonnages. He believes smaller boats that catch less should be given a lower VDS rate to be at par with others.

Analyzing the catch data for the US purse seine fleet in the WCPO, a fairly mid-range annual catch is seen, at nearly 6,500 tons. This is despite it being considered one of the leading players globally. Brian Hallman, Chairman of the American Tunaboat Association (ATA), which represents a large number of US seiner owners, says that total annual catches by a vessel depend to a “considerable extent on the number of days fished.”

In the past, the ATA has criticized some WCPFC conservation measures for being discriminatory against certain players, and for being too restrictive on the US fleet for example. The organization has also argued VDS days in the tuna-rich PNA zones are too expensive for US seiners. In the recently reshaped South Pacific Tuna Treaty, in which the US pays a set amount for a package of PNA VDS access, less days were included in the agreement than in previous years.

The US fleet has also complained it faces restrictive access to high seas areas in the Western Pacific.

In the WCPO overall, fleets record much higher average catch per vessel than in any other ocean region, and as well as the richness of stocks in this zone, this is largely influenced by the distance taken to travel to transshipment ports. In the Western Pacific there is always a port in fairly close proximity to fishing grounds, which means less time is used up in between fishing trips.

The EPO: Longer Trips

Head to the EPO, and fluctuations can also be seen in the per vessel catch performance under different fleets, but there are less dramatic differences than seen in the Western Pacific. As a whole, each purse seiner operating in the EPO averagely catches far less on a yearly basis than those in the WCPO. As well as less tuna-rich fishing grounds, this is also impacted by the distance most seiners need to travel in order to transship, and of course, the extent of conservation measures in the region.

For many fleets in the EPO, the travel time to a transshipment port is much greater than in the WCPO, with less availability and locations.

As well as this, the major tuna fishery conservation measure in the EPO is the purse seine closure, which means a 72 day complete halt of operations for each seiner. On paper this is stronger than the FAD-ban implemented in the WCPO, which allows free-school fishing to continue.

More yellowfin tuna is also caught in this region, which is mostly netted within free schools. This is a fishing method regarded less efficient overall and is also banned during the EPO purse seine closure.

Per vessel, it is actually the US fleet, recently more active in the EPO region that shows the highest annual catch, according to the available 2016 data.

Before then, most US seiners fished only in the Western Pacific. During the latter months of 2015 around 10 US vessels, reportedly mostly under Tri Marine ownership, started to switch between the WCPO and EPO more commonly, increasing their presence in the Eastern Pacific zone.

According to Hallman, the size of US seiners under IATTC registration is “class 6”, which is the largest category, explaining the higher productivity per vessel. As well as this, the US fleet is known for a relatively high use of FADs within its operations.

Additionally, US seiners in the EPO fish in more western zones of the region, meaning they have choice to transship in both Eastern and WCPO ports, which can shorten the time they take to travel between trips. A US source confirms that vessels can transship and land tuna in any port they wish, not only in the IATTC jurisdiction area.

When taking the more common EPO purse seine fleets into account, the data shows some surprising results. Ecuador, the largest fleet in the region, catching a big volume and known for a high use of FADs, shows lower tonnages per vessel annual catch rate than others.

While there are some large seiners flagged to Ecuador on the IATTC vessels list, nearly 30 percent of the 116 active vessels have a gross tonnage below the 400 mark.

The Panama and Colombian fleets come out on top when it comes to the average annual catch per vessel, and one boatowner in the region credits this to the fact that Panamanian and Colombian seiners are much bigger than those flagged to other nations. Only one of the Colombian vessels on the IATTC register has a gross tonnage below 400, while most are well above the 1,000 level. For Panama, none are below 400, most are above 1,000, and a significant proportion peak above a 2,000 GT.

Speaking specifically of Colombian boats, he said “under normal conditions they should catch an average of 4,500 tons per year”. For some, as the data shows, that is not the case, because the seiners choose to only target free-schools and not to fish on FADs.

He therefore states that just because per each vessel, Colombian seiners are catching more than other EPO fleets, it does not mean they are more efficient. Sometimes it can be the complete opposite, he notes.

If the catches were calculated in regards to boat capacity, he believes the most “predatory” and most efficient fleets would come out as Ecuador, the US, Nicaragua and Panama, but that Colombian seiners should not be in that list. The Colombian and Mexican fleets, he says, have less catches when taking purse seiner capacity into account because they do not set on FADs.

For Colombian vessels, there are also no transshipment ports located in their home country, meaning once full they often have to travel much further to discharge their catch.

This source believes that regulations from RFMOs should review the characteristics of individual fleets, and this should be considered when implementing conservation and management measures. “Vessels should be regulated regarding their fishing methods,” he stresses. “This year at last a limit on the amount of FADs each vessel can deploy has been established during the latest meeting of the IATTC”.

However, according to this boatowner, the “ideal” is to see an end to FAD fishing globally overall – “due to its depredatory effects on the ecosystem and of course on tuna conservation”. He indicates that if more control was put on FAD measures and fleets were more duly rewarded for free-school fishing, a distinct shift could be seen.

But if the economic interest behind FAD fishing continues, which he says is mainly in regards to Spanish, Ecuadorian and US boatowners, this objective “will never be reached”.

Mexican boatowners have similar opinions when it comes to regulations of fleets, at least when it concerns the EPO, as they believe FADs in the south of the region affect the populations of fish where Mexican seiners operate.

The data shows that per vessel, the Mexican fleet catches around 2,553 tons per year, a mid-range figure for the region, but a representative of the fleet’s view is that this would be boosted if there were stricter controls on FAD fishing.

The “general thought” among Mexican boatowners, she says, “is that the line of FADs in the south are affecting the populations in the parts of the ocean where the Mexicans fish.” In addition to this there are climatological and weather related phenomena that affect fishing, she notes.

Stocks would also be healthier if less juvenile tuna species were caught within FAD fishing operations, according to the fleet representative, which would ultimately make the Mexican fleet’s mostly dolphin-associated, “sustainable” fishing more efficient. The seiners flagged to Mexico target larger yellowfin tuna most strongly, and this species is often caught in small sizes within purse seine FAD operations.

Where the Mexican fleet does show its efficiency is in other different ways, she believes. Boats are smaller and use little fuel due to the fishing technique, it is explained, and this makes overall fishing more cost-efficient and sustainable. Mexican seiners commonly use helicopters within their operations, which seek out the schools before the vessel travels the distance to it. This is a quicker and more fuel-efficient method than a seiner working alone and travelling what would be much greater distances.

While it is true that some very small (below 400 GT) seiners are flagged to Mexico, most are above the 1,000 level, however there are no super seiners registering a GT towards or over 2,000.

As Mexican boatowners largely feel their approach to fishing puts far less pressure on tuna and other stocks, as well as having a smaller carbon footprint, they believe conservation measures set in the EPO should take more aspects into consideration. Different fleets and perhaps individual vessels should face varying controls, they consider.

Points that can be taken into consideration, according to the Mexican source are the following:

• Catches and species of incidental fishing of fleets
• Size and species of catch discharged
• Monitoring the use of FADs
• Prioritizing the sustainability of the resource

Ultimately, it is believed the regulations placed on the fleets like Mexico’s should be less strict as “the fleet is smaller” and “uses far less fuel which is more cost effective and more sustainable”.

With distances to transshipment ports and less rich tuna grounds impacting EPO seiners’ catch, as well as the normal characteristics of vessel size and method, some might question why Tri Marine owned boats have been fishing more heavily in the Eastern Pacific in recent years.

While the data shows less efficiency in this region it is important to point out that a large chunk of the fishing ground is high seas, and therefore fleet access is free. This strongly contrasts the major WCPO zone of the PNA, where USD 350-400 can be paid per ton of tuna caught – but where vessels have a much higher chance of strong productivity.

The Indian Ocean: EU Fleet Divided

In the Indian Ocean there are only four major operating fleets when it comes to tuna purse seine operations. Here, again less fluctuation is seen in average per vessel catches than in the WCPO, but there are still clear differences.

What stands out the most is the low average per vessel total of seiners flagged to France. As has been seen with other fleets, vessel size and methods play a key role in this result. On the IOTC register, French flagged seiners, of which there are 28, show a big range in catch, from a gross tonnage of around 130 – 2,700. As well as this, the French fleet is most known in this region for its free-school operations, with FAD sets from these vessels being much more minimal.

French seiners also commonly target large-size mature yellowfin tuna, the popular species on their home market. The same lower average catch figures can be seen for the French fleet in the Atlantic Ocean, where its techniques and target species are the same.

CFTO (Compagnie Francaise Du Thon Oceanique) is the largest player when it comes to the French purse seine fleet, and the company was bought by Dutch fishing firm, Parlevliet and Van der Plas in 2016. It now operates around 14 purse seiners and gave strong indication when it took over CFTO that it would continue prioritizing free-school operations.

In the Indian Ocean, the French fleet has already seen rewards for this when it comes to conservation measures set. However this came from the member state’s (EU) decision, and not from the RFMO itself. A yellowfin catch quota was implemented first in 2017, and the EU, like other IOTC members, was stipulated by the Commission to reduce its catch of this species by 15 percent from 2014 levels.

Due to the French fleet’s lower use of FADs, French-flagged seiners were only told by the EU to reduce their catch by five percent. The Spanish fleet on the other hand, known to be much more reliant on FAD fishing, had to cut its yellowfin catches by a much more significant 20 percent. It has been stated by several sources that the EU chose to manage the quota in this way as it was largely considered that FADs had strongly contributed to the reduced yellowfin stock levels.

The higher FAD use of the Spanish fleet is also reflected in the average catch totals of its vessels in the Indian Ocean, which is over double the figure for French flagged seiners. The Spanish fleet is furthermore renowned for encompassing some of the biggest vessels in the world, known as super seiners, and reaching gross tonnages up to over 4,400.

Seiners flagged to the Seychelles show the highest per vessel average catch of all in the IO and most of these seiners are Spanish owned. It is clear to see on the IOTC vessel register that Spanish boatowners have been flagging only their larger seiners to this IO island nation, with the 13 vessels registered to the Seychelles having gross tonnages ranging from 2,020 to 4,428.

Overall in the Indian Ocean, most fleets have a higher average catch rate per vessel than in the EPO, and this will partly be credited again to the distance to transshipment ports. The Mozambique Channel is a particularly tuna-rich area in the region and the Seychelles’ Port Victoria as well as Madagascar’s Antsiranana are in close proximity, compared to the distances travelled in the EPO.

While transshipment at-sea is prohibited, Mauritius’ Port Louis provides a transshipment location for seiners, without the need to head all the way back to mainland harbors.

The Atlantic: Smaller Vessels

Large seiners are also part of the Spanish fleet in the Atlantic Ocean, where similarly to the IO, EU seiners under Spanish and French flags are the most dominant operators. However there are also many much smaller vessels flagged to Spain in this region, which explains the extremely low average yearly catch.

While a handful of Spanish seiners peak above 2,000 and even 3,000 in gross tonnage, a large majority post a GT of far less than 400. Still their FAD reliance has caused concerns.

Representatives of the French segment of the EU tuna purse seiner fleet have expressed that vessels using FADs more regularly – like Spanish seiners – should face stricter regulations on their operations than those utilizing free-school fishing as a more common method. French tuna fishing bodies have long pushed the EU delegation within IOTC and IATTC meetings to propose stricter regulations on FAD use, however a push back usually comes mainly from the Spanish, who strongly oppose it.

In the Atlantic, the per vessel efficiency of the French fleet is much lower than in the IO, and this again is explained by a bigger mix in vessel size, with smaller seiners operating here. Around 50 percent are below the 400 GT mark.

The Ghanaian fleet in the region, while smaller in vessel numbers, reports the highest per purse seiner catch. Just two seiners on the ICCAT register under the Ghana flag are below a gross tonnage of 400, and a large number peak above 1,000 GT, which explains this result. Other than the three mentioned there are not many major national fleets fishing in this region that largely contribute to the tropical tuna tonnages.

While the RFMOs for both ocean regions – the Indian and Atlantic – have set annual FAD limits in the region, many have argued they are not strict enough, and that compliance with these measures is not being taken as seriously as it should.

Although most in the industry would agree it is unfeasible for RFMOs to set separate conservation measures and regulations for every individual purse seiner, depending on its characteristics and activities, some believe that at least each member nation could be reviewed and treated differently.

Where problems may lie in this kind of management is among different companies or even different countries coming under one Commission member (EU), when their approach to fishing and sustainability can be very unique.

Many would argue that it is already difficult for RFMO meetings to yield consensus when it comes to conservation measure adoption, and if this had to be reached on even more separate proposals, it could cause bigger issues in making important agreements. As well as this, it would have to be agreed which characteristics should be taken into account. Just because a fleet’s vessel has higher average catches, does not mean they are generally more efficient or less sustainable. They could also operate larger seiners or spend less time in port.

It is not just agreeing on the measures that can be difficult in the first place, but ensuring compliance from every fleet would likely create major challenges.

What remains clear however is that there are fleets which feel they are “tarnished with the same brush” as other more “damaging” fleets when it comes to the regulations agreed on in different ocean regions.

In the IO for example, those setting more on free schools are still told to limit their yellowfin catch, when they believe the fleets fully reliant on FADs are the reason for the stock’s decline in the first place. In the EPO, all seiners have to stop for two months of the year to protect yellowfin and bigeye, no matter their average catch or the sets they choose to make.

This leaves two options of which neither appear to be the golden solution; set conservation measures that treat every fleet the same, regardless of obvious differences; or risk not setting any conservation measures at all, as consensus cannot be reached.

Although in an ideal world, none of them would be the answer, for the sake of the health of stocks, the first is likely more effective, with every player sticking to the same rules. This is to sustain not only tuna populations, but also productive business, despite some thinking that parts of the industry are not only “productive”, but “predatory”.