MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Fisheries News

Headlines: French Navy catches toothfish poacher; New regulations for frozen fish labelling; Santa Catarina hopes for sardine recovery; French crew catch giant squid;

French Navy catches toothfish poacher

A longliner with a crew mostly Chilean was caught illegally fishing by the French Navy in the Kerguelen area in the Indian Ocean. According to the Magallanes Fishermen Union president Jorge Cofré, the Seychelles Islands registered vessel, named "Lince" carries a crew of 30, who are mostly from Magallanes Region. Other crew members are Spanish and Portuguese. "Lince" apparently was poaching in an area known to be rich in tooth-fish and now is being escorted by a French Navy frigate to the island of Reunion where she's expected to arrive this weekend. Mr. Cofré said that the Chilean crew members will be flying back to Chile over the weekend.

Oyster producers unite to improve production

Chilean Oyster and cupped oyster producers have signed a Clean Production Agreement (APL) with central and regional authorities in a bid to raise production standards. Some 27 private companies of the Oyster and Cupped Oyster Producers Association (Apooch) have agreed to comply with a total of 82 action points, which should be completed within three years. They hope this will facilitate access to new markets, improve sustainability and create stability within the sector. This is the first APL to be introduced in the north of Chile and as the sector is becoming recognised as "one of the country's leading productive sectors" it has commitments to the community, the Government and the country's economic growth, Apooch general manager Ivonne Etchepare told Aqua Noticias . She added that Apooch had promoted this agreement for more than a year and managed to unite producers from three separate regions. Apooch will also act as the monitoring agent to ensure compliance with the contract. "It is a great responsibility for the sector to be part of this type of commitment. It is a fairly ambitious agreement, considering 82 action points must be carried out in a maximum three-year period with more than 50 per cent being completed before 2004," said Etchepare. National Clean Production Council Director Rafael Lorenzini signed the contract, along with fisheries, health and sanitary services officials, regional authorities, Apooch president John Völker Charles and representatives from the 27 companies involved. Cupped oyster (Argopecten purpuratus) was commercially cultivated in the area for the first time in 1987. Since then, its quality and flavour helped it gain a foothold on the international market where it is sold fresh, IQF frozen and with roe. Most important markets are US and Europe - especially France -. (FIS/MP).

New regulations for frozen fish labelling

The Spanish Council of Ministers has approved a Royal Decree regulating the labelling of frozen seafood products - from capture fisheries and aquaculture - and which encompasses all current Spanish and European legislation. According to the authorities, the sheer variety of frozen fishery products sparked a debate on the need to provide accurate information for consumers on the entire production process from the moment fish or shellfish is harvested to the moment it reaches market shelves. All operators involved in the various stages of production will be affected. And all products covered by the regulations "must display in a visible place with clear, legible and indelible characters the following specifications on their packaging: commercial and scientific denomination of the species, production method (sea or fresh water fishery, fish farming or shellfish gathering) and catch or farming area." In the case of frozen products that are presented to end consumers without packaging, the information must be displayed on a board or sign that is placed on or next to the product. According to misPeces.com, once section of the Royal Decree deals with the labelling of shrimp and prawn presented peeled, head-off. It lists species that should be labelled "gamba" and specifies all prawn and Argentine red shrimp to be labelled "langostino". The regulations were drawn up by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Food Health and Consumption ministries and by regional authorities. The fisheries sector and the "Fishery Products Quality and Standardisation Group" also participated in the project. Government departments involved with food policy and food safety reviewed the text and the Spanish Oceanographic Institute (IEO) checked the commercial scientific denominations. (FIS/MP).-

Santa Catarina hopes for sardine recovery

According to a survey conducted by the Brazilian Fishery Research Group (GEP) at Itajaí Valley University (Univali), Santa Catarina's fish production dropped 26% in 2002. Sardine was the main species affected, but deepwater crab, bonito and frogfish catches were also down. According to sector sources, sardine catches reached only 8,000 tonnes in 2002 compared with 24,900 tonnes in 2001. During the last season, which ended on 1 December, fishing concentrated in Sao Paulo and no sardine catches were recorded at all in Santa Catarina. As sardine fisheries face gloomy prospects, AntÃÂÂ'nio Momm, president of Itajai's Fishing Industry Union, said the sector was now pinning its hopes on this year's campaign and the latest government decisions to boost the sector. José Fritsch, head of the new Fisheries Department, will negotiate a reduction in the sales and services tax (ICMS), which is currently 12%. He will also have to resolve the controversial issue of applying ICMS to oil, which has infuriated Santa Catarina fishery businessmen, who accuse the former Government of disadvantaging the regional fishery sector. In an interview with A Noticia, Momm said he hoped that the new federal and state authorities would apply more appropriate policies than their predecessors had and that these measures would help the sector recover its place in the national economy. (FIS/MP).-

French crew catch giant squid

French sailors taking part in the round-the-world Jules Verne Trophy say they have come across one of the most elusive monsters of the sea - the giant squid. Veteran yachtsman Olivier De Kersauson - who sailed from Brittany on Saturday - said that several hours into his voyage he found that a giant squid had clamped onto the hull of his boat. The creature - scientifically known as Architeutis dux - is the largest of all invertebrates. Scientists believe it can be as long as 18 metres (60 feet). Giant squids have been found washed ashore or caught in the nets of trawlers, but scientists have never seen one alive. Olivier de Kersauson said the sighting occurred off the Portuguese island of Madeira. "I saw a tentacle through a porthole," Olivier de Kersauson said from his boat. "It was thicker than my leg and it was really pulling the boat hard." Mr de Kersauson says two of the tentacles were blocking the rudder. Giant squids often feature in maritime legends and novels - including Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. But unlike Jules Verne's fictional Captain Nemo, Mr de Kersauson did not have to fight with the monster and cut off its tentacles. The French sailor says the squid released its grip when he stopped the boat. "We didn't have anything to scare off this beast, so I don't know what we would have done if it hadn't let go," Mr de Kersauson said. "We weren't going to attack it with our penknives." Mr de Kersauson says the squid must have been seven or eight metres (22 to 26 feet) long. "I've never seen anything like it in 40 years of sailing," he says. Giant squids are carnivorous molluscs who live deep under the sea. Only about 250 sightings - mostly of dead animals - have ever been recorded. A giant squid measuring about 15 metres (50 feet) was found washed up on an Australian beach in July. A smaller one was caught by a trawler's net off the coast of Scotland a year ago. (BBC).-