Steven Adolf TUNA WARS Powers Around the Fish We Love to Conserve Tuna Wars Steven Adolf Tuna Wars Powers Around the Fish We Love to Conserve Steven Adolf Amsterdam, The Netherlands Translated by Anna Asbury and Suzanne Heukensfeldt Jansen This publication has been made possible with financial support from the Dutch Foundation for Literature and as well as a financial contribution of the WWF Netherlands (Wereld Natuur Fonds-Nederland). ISBN 978-3-030-20640-6 ISBN 978-3-030-20641-3 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20641-3 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2009, 2019 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG. The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland Acknowledgements This book could not have been written without the support and knowledge of a great number of people around the globe who are involved in the world of tuna. I owe a lot to the research for this book to the support, enthusiasm and sharing of scientific knowledge of Simon Bush and the discussions and comments of Paul van Zwieten, who both lead the BESTTuna research project of Wageningen University. Sietze Vellema gave me the necessary insights into the global value chain theories. In particular I owe a lot to Henk Brus and Maurice Brownjohn for their comments and their sheer endless knowledge of the tuna industry and sustainability issues. Alain Fonteneau has been a great help in finding my way in the science of biology and economics and the history of bluefin tuna statistics, just like his Japanese counterpart Makoto Peter Miyake and their Spanish colleague José Luis Cort. Stefaan Depypere was a great support in explaining the European fisheries policies and a great help with ICCAT. For the archeological part of the tuna trail, I owe a lot to Clive Finlayson, Darío Bernal and Ángel Muñoz. From the ONG and researcher side I want to thank Sergi Tudela, Bubba Cook, Roberto Mielgo, Rolf Groeneveld, Giuseppe di Carlo, Carel Drijver, Reinier Hille Ris Lambers, Raul García, Elsa Lee, Oliver Knowles, Ric O’Barry, Sari Tolvanen, Ephraim Batungbacal, Hans Nieuwenhuis, Bill Holden, Amanda Nickson, Paulus Tak, Gerald Leape, Andy Sharpless, Daniel Pauly, Alice Miller, Victor Restrepo, Christien Absil, Boris Worms, Francisco Blaha, Wietse van der Werf, Jean-Marc Fromentin, Johan Verreth, Jonah van Beijnen, Ted Bestor, Elisabeth Havice, Kees Lankester, Kate Barclay, Liam Campling, Quentin Hanich and Raphael Vassallo. From the industrial fisheries and tuna governance institutions, I am very grateful to Transform Aqorau, Julio Morón, Javier Garat, Juan Manuel Vieites, Juan Corrales Garavilla, Manuel Calvo, David Martínez, Chris Hue, Francisco Buencamino, Willem Huisman, Narin Niruttinanon, Harry Koster, Gelare Nader, Floor Kuijt, Diego Crespo, Jakob Doorn, Gorjan Nikolk, Glenn Hurry and Herman Wisse. Suzanne Jansen and Anna Asbury did a great job in translating the main part of the manuscript in fluent English. Thanks Inge den Boer for her help in the final editing. I would like to honour the memory of my cousin and good friend P.W. Goedhart who helped me a lot with the biological details of fish. The memory of Luisa Isabel Álvarez de Toledo is of a woman who herself was a force of nature when it came to defend the legacy of tuna. v vi Acknowledgements Finally, my love goes to Luis, my family and friends who have suffered for my Tuna Wars for much too long. This book is translated with funding of the Dutch Foundation of Literature and support of the Dutch WNF. Part of the research of this book was conducted under the Wageningen Interdis- ciplinary Research Fund (INREF) supported by BESTTuna Programme. Steven Adolf gratefully acknowledges the support of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation that helped funding part of the research under Grant 2012- 38353 and 2014-39668. Tuna Timeline 72,000 BC Early humans wait for tuna on the beaches of South Africa and eat them 50,000 BC Gibraltar Cave Neanderthals also put tuna on the menu and paint a hashtag 1500 BC Development of Almadraba fisheries and large-scale tuna pro- duction in the Phoenician cities of the Eastern Mediterranean 1000 BC Phoenicians go West; Almadraba spreads out in Mediterranean settlements in Carthage, Gades (Cadiz) and beyond 264–241 BC First Punic-Romans War, Romans take over Sicilian tuna fisheries 241–218 BC Barcas dynasty established in South of Spain, establish large- scale tuna fisheries 218–201 BC Second Punic-Roman War, Hannibal Barcas Cross the Alps with elephant army 149–146 BC Third Punic-Roman War, Fall of Carthage, industrial tuna fisheries become Roman 146 BC–300 AD Roman supremacy in large-scale fisheries and trade salted tuna and garum 300 The Fall of the Western Roman Empire, large-scale fisheries and trade decline 500–1000 Dark Age large-scale tuna fisheries 1294 Guzmán ‘el Buno’, conqueror of Tarifa, is rewarded with tuna fisheries right of Spanish south coast 1369–1445 Guzmán family grow into biggest tuna magnate-nobility of Spain, Dukes of tuna 1568 Spanish reach the Solomon Islands 1571 The Battle of Lepanto, Almadraba flourishes under Dukes of Medina Sidonia 1577 People admire tuna in Coenen’s Fish Book 1588 Spanish Armada sails off under the command of tuna Duke of Medina Sidonia 1600 around Cervantes writes tuna novel vii viii Tuna Timeline 1609 Grotius publishes The Freedom of the Seas 1641 Failed Coup d’état Tuna Duke, decline in Tuna Fisheries 1757 ‘Tuna Saint’ Martín Sarmiento writes research and advice to promote sustainable tuna fisheries 1813–1815 Napoleonic Wars, start development of jars and cans for conservation 1816 End of tuna privilege Spanish Tuna Dukes 1840 Invention of sushi in Japan, including raw tuna 1880–1900 Introduction canned sardines, later tuna 1914–1918 World I, demand of canned tuna 1920 Plague of bluefin tuna damages fisheries Norway 1928 Start of Spanish Consorcio Nacional Almadrabero 1930 Japanese tuna fisheries expanding through pole and line 1935 Ceasing activities almadraba, strong growth US tuna canning industry 1940–1945 WO II, canned tuna demand 1942–1944 Start of Philippine tuna fisheries under Japanese occupation 1946–1952 Plague bluefin tuna, Trebeurden, France French Bask fishermen copy US purse seiner fisheries 1950 Record catch Norwegian fleet, southern bluefin tuna fisheries on the rise, the start of FAO tuna statistics 1952 General McArthur lifts Japanese fishing ban Japanese tuna fleet come back, longliners in Pacific, Indian Ocean, Atlantic Japanese tuna fisheries expansion followed by Korea, Taiwan, China American canning brands explore Philippine tuna fisheries Spanish and French Tuna fleet spread out West African Coast 1954 Gordon-Schaefer bioeconomic fisheries model for computing sustainable fisheries yield 1960 Top year catch of Southern bluefin south of Indonesia before catch nosedives 1968 ‘The Tragedy of the Commons’ by Garrett Hardin 1970s New Japanese techniques for freezing fish Port Lincoln growing tuna fisheries Japan discovers US east coast for bluefin tuna Japanese traders explore Philippine yellowfin for sushi Introduction of the FAD, known as payao in the Philippines 1980s Japan enters in Mediterranean bluefin fishery Massive slaughter of dolphins in East Pacific yellowfin tuna fisheries Purse seine becomes main gear in tuna fisheries US tuna fleet moves from Eastern to Western and Central Pacific Tuna Timeline ix 1981 French tuna fleet enters the Indian Ocean, followed by Spanish fleet 1982 PNA, the start of cartel tuna producing Island states UN Convention on the Law of the Sea UNCLOS) 1985 BFT disappears from North Sea 1988 Boycott Big Three US brands by Dolphin Coalition Start of Dolphin Safe label 1990 American Big Three declare to no longer use dolphin unsafe tuna 1990s Expansion purse seine bluefin tuna and tuna ranching Mediter- ranean, export to Japan rockets 1992 UN drift net ban 1996 Birth MSC certification label 2000 Start of Flipper Wars, Conquest Pacific 2003 Indonesia and the Philippines biggest tuna fishing nations in Western Central Pacific 2004 First Kinki Tuna, farmed tuna on the market PNA starts Vessel Day Scheme to limit tuna fisheries 2005 Illegal fisheries a major threat to sustainable tuna fisheries, Pirate Wars Horn of Africa 2006 Decline in Mediterranean bluefin tuna fisheries 2007 Birth of Kobe plot diagram for sustainable tuna fisheries 2009 Start of battle of Fisheries