Reducing Through Traceability

percent or more of global catch. paper. For example, U.S. fish Developing countries often lack Currently, it is all too easy to buyers often must issue a “fish basic regulatory structures to catch and sell fish outside of ticket” to record each purchase manage their or the legal channels—and once such from a vessel—but the fish tick- enforcement capacity to pre- fish are in global commod- et is not referenced when the vent foreign vessels from fish- ity supply chains, they can’t be same fish are sold to a wholesal- ing illegally in their waters and distinguished from their legally er or distributor, even though shipping their booty to foreign caught cousins. buyers may pass along other markets. Traceability systems address data related to origin, quality, The road to traceability in this problem by requiring a re- or certification status. these countries is a long one— cord to show that fish were har- By contrast, the private sector but ELI can help take an impor- Read Porter vested legally and reported to is far ahead, and a few groups tant step by assisting countries Institute authorities in a well-regulated have already developed tools to in building fisheries manage- Senior Attorney , thereby making it hard- allow automatic data transfer ment systems and ensuring that er and more expensive to sell il- and tracking across the entire their regulations provide for the licit fish. And once IUU supply chain. Gulf Wild and collection and transmission of hen you order red is reduced, stocks can rebound, ThisFish, for example, provide the key data needed to trace fish Wsnapper at a restau- improving both fishery health online tools that allow cus- back to their origin. We have rant, how do you know you’re and . Economi- tomers to see which specific long collaborated with West getting what you paid for? And cally, larger stocks also provide vessel landed their particular African countries to address how can you tell if it was caught for larger—but still sustain- fish. Similarly, certification natural resource challenges— legally in a ? able—legal catches. In addition, standards, such as the Marine from development of forestry While apps like fishermen should gain from Council, have de- laws in Liberia to design of an can help make choices, they’re price increases when the supply veloped “chain of custody” sys- international commission for of no use if seafood is misla- of IUU fish is shut off. tems to ensure that fish from the Guinea Current . beled or was caught illegally. Despite these benefits, few certified fisheries are kept sepa- Building on our past work, ELI Traceability systems are one an- fisheries currently include in- rate from non-certified fish. hopes to provide the techni- swer to this problem. tegrated traceability systems— By identifying regulatory cal assistance and resources Traceability systems track and each gap in data collection data gaps and learning from on- needed to address IUU fishing fish from vessel to table, allow- or transmission presents an going nongovernmental trace- and protect threatened fishery ing consumers to know where opportunity for fisheries fraud. ability systems, ELI can help resources. fish was caught, that it was ELI is working to identify and fisheries managers and regula- When I go out to eat, I try caught legally, and that it is la- overcome the barriers to devel- tors improve their data collec- to choose seafood from well- beled accurately—and studies opment and implementation tion and reporting. With simple managed fisheries—but my have shown that we’re willing of effective traceability systems changes, we can move closer to knowledge of seafood doesn’t to pay a premium for that in- both in the and a transparent, fraud-free supply help if “Florida red snapper” formation. Consumers are not globally. chain for domestic fish without is really catfish from Vietnam. the only beneficiaries of trace- Here at home, a variety of creating new bureaucratic re- Traceability systems are not a ability—these systems can also regulatory data-collection and quirements. magic bullet for ending seafood protect the environment and reporting requirements have Traceability problems can fraud—but they are an impor- support the fishing economy. created an embryonic traceabil- be much worse outside the tant tool in our ongoing battle Illegal, unreported, and un- ity system—but key data are not United States—and particularly to protect marine fisheries and regulated (IUU) fishing is a ma- always transferred, while other in West Africa, where foreign livelihoods and enable con- jor threat to long-term fishery data are (believe it or not) still “pirate trawlers” claim an esti- sumers to take control of their , representing 20 collected in triplicate on carbon mated 37 percent of the catch. plates.

This article first appeared in the March/April 2013 issue of The Environmental Forum®.