The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission has announced the blacklisting of a fleet of tuna fishing vessels in the Indian Ocean.
The move comes on the heels of an investigation by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) which found that the boats have a history of illegal fishing activity.
This fleet was previously banned from tuna fishing in the Atlantic in 2021 and was subsequently dropped by its insurance providers. According to Steve Trent, the CEO of the Environmental Justice Foundation:
“I applaud both the Atlantic and Indian Ocean tuna commissions for taking action to prevent this fleet from continuing to decimate ocean ecosystems with impunity – however tackling each illegal fleet one by one is not the solution. To safeguard the ocean, food security and livelihoods around the world, we need to place transparency at the heart of global fisheries. Cracking down on opacity by preventing the use of flags of convenience and improving port inspections, coupled with the publishing and sharing of information – such as vessel license lists, history of offenses, and full ownership details – can help governments, regional fisheries management organisations, law-abiding fishing companies, NGOs, retailers and even consumers to work together to rid our oceans of these damaging operators. We need to hold these illegal operators to account, and that starts with transparency.”
