Tuna travels faster, further, and wider than almost any other fish in the ocean. It provides nutrition for people all over the world, shores up millions of coastal livelihoods, and even some national economies. As apex predators, tuna fish are also vital players in ocean ecosystems, helping to regulate populations of smaller fish and contributing to the overall health and balance of the marine environment.
Ten years ago, fears for the sustainability of tuna made headlines in the news. Consumer demand surged, and fragmented management systems struggled to control growing fishing pressures. Today, 99 percent of the catches of major tuna populations come from stocks scientifically assessed to be biologically sustainable.
The Common Oceans Program’s Tuna Project works with regional fisheries management organizations, non-governmental organizations and scientists to promote harvest strategies and regulatory measures that prevent over-fishing.
The project is working to make tuna fisheries sustainable in other ways. In longline and purse seine tuna fisheries, seabirds, sharks, turtles and whales can become accidentally caught in fishers' nets and lines. It works with partners to share and spread knowledge among fishers on best practices to prevent and mitigate damage to other wildlife species caused by tuna fisheries.
Key activities
Improve tuna fisheries management
Ensure that all major tuna stocks are fished at sustainable levels advancing the use of harvest strategies.Promote the ecosystem approach to fisheries management in tuna regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs).
Promote sustainable fishing practices with incentives such as better market conditions for sustainably sourced fishery products.
Tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing
Make enforcement of fisheries regulations more efficient with training in monitoring, control and surveillance.
Improve compliance with fishing regulations by promoting innovative tools like electronic monitoring and traceability systems.
Reduce impacts of tuna fisheries on the environment
Decrease bycatch by improved monitoring of catches of sharks, rays, cetaceans and seabirds and promoting best practices in bycatch mitigation techniques and alternative gear.
Lower environmental impacts by advocating the adoption of ocean-friendly fishing devices.
Partners
In collaboration with: Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels (ACAP), BirdLife International (BLI), Conservation International (CI), INFOPESCA, International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF/ISSA), International MCS Network (IMCSN), International Pole and Line Foundation (IPNLF), International Whaling Commission (IWC), Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Pacific Community (SPC), Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), PEW Charitable Trusts, Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), The Ocean Foundation (TOF), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
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Facts and figures
The global tuna market is worth around USD 40 billion annually
99 percent of tuna landings coming from managed stocks not subject to overfishing
5.2 million tonnes of commercial tuna was caught in 2023, 6.5 percent of all fish caught at sea
96 countries are members of the five tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organizations