The Nature Conservancy today launched a major new initiative that seeks to help monitor industrial tuna fisheries. Through its Tuna Transparency Pledge, developed in consultancy with other NGOs, retailers, and seafood experts, signatories are aspiring to advance 100 percent on-the-water monitoring across all industrial tuna fishing vessels within their supply chains or jurisdictions by 2027, taking a bold yet achievable step in transforming the health and sustainability of our oceans.

According to The Nature Conservancy, one of the biggest obstacles to sustainably managing global tuna fisheries is the lack of on-the-water data. It is estimated that one in every five fish caught comes from illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and less than 5 percent of longline tuna vessels have an observer on board to independently verify activity. Without eyes on the water, the vast majority of industrial tuna fishing activities are often left unchecked for compliance with fishery regulations. This results in an unlevel playing field for the many law-abiding fishers around the globe.

“The absence of transparency at sea allows for IUU caught fish to enter the supply chain undetected. We cannot afford to ignore the urgent need for action to protect ocean wildlife and fish stocks, and—in turn—the people they feed and the communities that rely on them,” says Ben Gilmer, large-scale fisheries director for The Nature Conservancy. He adds: “On-the-water monitoring technology is ready to scale today, which helps ensure that the seafood on shelves has been harvested in compliance with fishery laws. The new Tuna Transparency Pledge will help drive market transformation that can help guarantee a long-term and sustainable seafood supply.”

Through the Tuna Transparency Pledge, The Nature Conservancy aims to unite key players across the seafood supply chain, including companies and governments, to help accelerate the adoption of on-the-water monitoring. Electronic monitoring – the use of onboard video cameras, GPS, and sensors to monitor and verify fishing activities – and human observers can strengthen transparency and provide critical data needed for the sustainable management of tuna and other ocean wildlife.

While Walmart, Albertsons Companies, Thai Union, Belize, and the Federated States of Micronesia, already joined as the first signatories, The Nature Conservancy is now seeking sign-ons from other retailers, seafood supply chain organisations, and governments to help drive industry-wide transformation.

“We know that the public is increasingly concerned about where their food comes from. As policy makers and stewards of our world’s fisheries resources, we are equally concerned and have the responsibility to ensure that these resources are being sustainably utilised. That’s why we are supporting the Tuna Transparency Pledge, advocating for full transparency in fishing operations to help end illegal, unreported and unregulated tuna fishing. A commitment to 100 percent monitoring of tuna fishing vessels will help combat overfishing and ensure food, climate and economic security around the world,” comments Robert Robinson, deputy director of Belize’s High Seas Fisheries Unit.

“In many tuna fisheries around the world, independent monitoring of fishing activity is not adequate, making us blind to many known conservation and compliance problems, such as illegal fishing, misreported or unreported catch, and bycatch of endangered, threatened and protected species,” adds Daniel Suddaby, executive director of the Global Tuna Alliance.

“What we can’t see creates risk to fish stocks, fisheries, and companies that purchase tuna. Global Tuna Alliance Partners believe that 100 percent observer coverage, through human and/or electronic monitoring, provides the means to mitigate the conservation and compliance issues that put tuna stocks, ocean ecosystems, and tuna supply chains at risk. We applaud the initial signatories of the Tuna Transparency Pledge for their efforts to address unsustainable and illegal fishing practices within their supply chains and jurisdictions,” says Suddaby.  

To meet the 2027 target to achieve 100 percent on-the-water monitoring on industrial tuna fishing vessels within supply chains or management jurisdictions, signatories of the Tuna Transparency Pledge aim to implement systems to track and verify progress against the Tuna Transparency Pledge. Where applicable, this includes seeking that vessels register for the Vessels in Other Sustainability Initiatives (VOSI) list, hosted by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation, or an equivalent tracking and verification tool. Signatories further pledge to develop a credible plan to meet the 2027 target, as well as to monitor pledge progress through an annual verification process.

To support signatories with the development of timebound and ambitious implementation roadmaps, The Nature Conservancy has outlined a list of tools available to identify, verify and track fishing vessels implementing best practice, such as the VOSI list and the ProActive Vessel Register (PVR).

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