Illegal Fishing and Transparency - Oceana USA

Illegal Fishing and Transparency

Expanding Transparency and Traceability to Stop Illegal Fishing and Seafood Fraud

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The Campaign

The world’s oceans face a dire threat: Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing. Across the globe, IUU fishing depletes marine resources, destroys habitats and is  explicitly linked to forced labor and human rights abuses. While the federal government has taken some steps to combat these problems in the past, an estimated $2.4 billion worth of seafood derived from IUU fishing was imported into the U.S. in 2019 alone. Oceana is working to ensure that U.S. dollars do not continue supporting these illicit activities at sea, which can impact the economy, environment and human rights. Background: IUU fishing costs the global seafood industry as much as $26 billion to $50 billion annually. In the United States, up to 85% of the fish consumed is imported, with up to 32% of wild-caught seafood imports being products of illegal or unreported fishing. IUU fishing can include fishing without authorization, ignoring catch limits, operating in closed areas, targeting protected wildlife, and fishing with prohibited gear. These illicit activities can destroy essential habitats, severely deplete fish populations, and threaten global food security. These actions not only contribute to overfishing, but also give bad actors an unfair advantage over honest fishermen that play by the rules. Oceana’s campaign aims to stop illegal fishing, increase transparency at sea and require traceability for all seafood ensuring every fish sold in the U.S. is safe, legally caught, responsibly sourced and honestly labeled.

Victories

Take Action

SEAFOOD SHOULD NOT COME AT THE COST OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND HEALTHY OCEANS

Tell President Biden: Get tough on illegal fishing. We must ensure that all seafood imported into the United States is safe, legally caught, responsibly sourced, and honestly labeled.

TELL NOAA: WE WANT LEGALLY CAUGHT AND RESPONSIBLY SOURCED SEAFOOD

Urge NOAA to act now to issue its final rule on the U.S. Seafood Import Monitoring Program and tell them to expand the program to all seafood.

News & Reports

Around the Web

Learn More

What is Seafood Fraud?

Seafood Fraud Reports

The Global Reach of Seafood Fraud

2016 National Seafood Fraud Testing Results (MAP)

More than 500 Chefs for Seafood Traceability (MAP)

Shrimp Fraud Report Infographic

Infographic: What is the Path Your Seafood Takes?

Conservation Impacts of Seafood Fraud

Examples of Commonly Mislabeled Seafood

What Can You Do? Tips for Consumers

VIDEO: One Name One Fish

VIDEO: Fish Stories

2019 Nationwide Seafood Fraud Testing Results

How Oceana Uses Global Fishing Watch Data

What is AIS?

Fact Sheet: Human Rights Abuses at Sea

Overlap of Tagged Sharks and Commercial Fishing

Video of Tagged Sharks Overlaid with Commercial Fishing

Hotspots of Suspected Transshipping

View Global Fishing Watch Here

Photos from Global Fishing Watch Launch

Poll: American Voters Want to End Illegal Fishing & Seafood Fraud

Health Risks of Seafood Fraud

Fact Sheet: China’s Global Fishing Footprint