Catching the ‘Goldfish’: Sustainability Factors of Fisheries KEY CONCLUSIONS
KEY CONCLUSIONS
Fishery is a dynamically developing global industry
“Fishery and fish farming today is the fastest growing branch of food production. The industry is of great importance for global development,” Eugenia Serova, Director of Liaison Office with the Russian Federation, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Fisheries play an important role in the development of the Far East
“The fish industry is of strategic importance for the development of the Far East; and the state task is to help the industry implement all the projects of today. Of the 950 residents currently working on special terms, 45 companies are in the fishing industry. The volume of the committed investments amounts to almost 40 billion roubles,” Denis Tikhonov, General Director, Corporation for Far East Development.
“Investments in the Far Eastern fishing industry are of utmost importance. We hope for the best,” Dong-Yeob Yang, Director General of the Distant-water Fisheries Division, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries of the Republic of Korea.
ISSUES
Lack of common international resource assessments
“We are yet to distribute the Northern Atlantic quotas, and different countries assess their stock based on different data,” Ilya Shestakov, Deputy Minister of Agriculture of the Russian Federation; Head, Federal Agency for Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo).
Quality of the product
“Today is not only hunger that is a problem but the quality of nutrition as well. Fish, marine resources provide from 17% to 20% of animal protein for the population of the world,” Eugenia Serova
“There are certain diseases that we have to contend with, and a whole series of measures are being implemented to grow healthy fish, because we are talking about sustainable, healthy development,” Liv Monica Stubholt, Chairman of the Board, Norwegian-Russian Chamber of Commerce; Partner, Law Firm Selmer.
Instability of legislation
“In addition to preserving the stock itself, besides operating under environmental regulations, legislative stability is important. <…> Any revision in this part could lead to unpredictable outcomes,” Ilya Shestakov.
Russian fisheries wholesale is next to non-existent
“Wholesalers, traders are essentially being ignored. The whole world follows the path of enabling them, and we here are offered an absolutely different scheme. The fish market system is extremely unstable without traders, wholesales,” German Zverev, President, All-Russian Association of Fisheries Enterprises, Entrepreneurs and Exporters.
The need to modernize production technologies
“A huge challenge and a big issue is the program of the deep-sea fishing development. It is impossible to extract resources at such depth with existing fishing gear,” Ilya Shestakov.
“It is extremely important that the industry utilizes the latest technology, which would make it sustainable and competitive,” Finnbogi Jonsson, Chairman, Knarr Maritime Consortium.
SOLUTIONS
State support of the industry
“Countries that subsidize the fishing industry through special terms on fuel and VAT have more opportunities to ramp up production,” Ilya Shestakov.
Improving the quality of resource assessment
“Sustainable fishing cannot exist on reserves only. It primarily relies on a scientific assessment of reserves and their preservation,” Ilya Shestakov.
“Sustainable development is in the protection of the existing resources,” Liv Monica Stubholt.
Long term planning
“The fishing industry requires long-term market planning. Scientific research and new technologies are the key to success in both management and operations,” Finnbogi Jonsson.
International cooperation
“It is impossible to work in isolation. We must consider the situation on a global scale and take other markets into account. We must cooperation with other countries, especially in terms of setting common standards,” Liv Monica Stubholt.
Sustainable legislation and common fishing standards
“Sustainable fisheries are, first and foremost, in sustainable legislation,” Sergey Darkin, President, Pacific Investment Group (TIGR) PJSC.
“The investments that go into the industry certainly contribute to its development and technology improvement, but it is necessary to work with small businesses, with small-scale fisheries, to explain and clarify the necessity and importance of modernization and change in order to comply with modern standards,” Liv Monica Stubholt.
More detailed information is available on the website of the Roscongress Foundation information and analytical system.
