Tag Archives: bluefin-tuna

The US government announced yesterday that it supports prohibiting international trade of Atlantic bluefin tuna, a move that could lead to the most sweeping trade restrictions ever imposed on the highly prized fish. Sushi aficionados in Japan and elsewhere have consumed bluefin for decades, causing the fish’s population to plummet. In less than two weeks, representatives from 175 countries will convene in Doha, Qatar, to determine whether to restrict the trade of bluefin tuna – valued for its rich, buttery taste – and an array of other imperiled species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Japan, the world’s largest bluefin consumer, opposes the idea of trade restrictions, while the European Union has yet to take a formal position. Over the past 40 years, the adult population of eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna has declined 72 percent. In the western Atlantic, the population has dropped 82 percent. The declines occurred even though bluefin fishing was being governed by an international panel that sets catch quotas and is supposed to curtail illegal fishing. added by: jefftego