Bluefin Tuna Ban Gets Support From France

by Clare Leschin-Hoar, Posted Feb 4th 2010 @ 2:00PM

Photo: Getty Images

Environmentalists who have lamented the serious decline of bluefin tuna stocks for decades are being bolstered by a significant move by France yesterday. According to today's New York Times article, France has agreed to support the listing of bluefin tuna as an endangered species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) -- a move that will give the EU enough votes to support the ban on bluefin tuna trade at next month's CITES meeting in Qatar.

Many environmentalists say that while the move by France is significant, it simply isn't bold enough.

"What's needed is a five-year total moratorium on fishing [for bluefin tuna]," says Carl Safina, co-founder of Blue Ocean Institute, who first proposed a ban on bluefin tuna to CITES in 1991. "A ban on international trade only goes part of the way. People could still catch bluefin and sell them domestically in any country, as long as it's not traded across borders."

While France now supports the proposed trade ban, they're qualifying that support with an 18-month delay to appease the country's fishermen and to give them time to adjust.

"If it's just a delay to assist fishermen with the transition, which is what we think, then that's OK. But the problem is, the fishermen may stockpile all the fish they can get during the 18-month delay, further threatening the species and its recovery, and that's bad," says Susan Lieberman, deputy director of international policy for the Pew Environment Group.

The U.S. government has not yet declared its position on the issue, and for the time being, bluefin tuna remains on menus at restaurants and sushi counters both here in the U.S. and abroad.

Despite its scarcity, will you still indulge in bluefin at the sushi bar?
Nope. Why encourage restaurants to contribute to the endangerment of bluefin?	194 (78.5%)
Yes. It's my favorite type of sashimi and I just can't give it up.	53 (21.5%)

Filed Under: Food Politics, News
Tags: bluefin tuna, CITES, endangered species, overfishing

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

3-01-2010 @5:36PM Raymond Goyco said... BLUE FIN TUNA 2-04-2010
THIS SUBJECT IS NOT WHAT THE GENERAL PUBLIC(approx90%) OR CERTAIN SPECIALITY PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW ABOUT AND THEREBY BE NOT CONCERNED. However it is very very important in the whole picture of food. I am one who does appreciate your article and learning about the possible loss via extinction of living creatures on this planet. I am one who would bring this up nondescriply in passing conversations hoping the info gets out to more ears. The lesson here for the each, of "one" , of us is we need to be mindful of a bigger picture. Oh. i like all your other food articles also. 3/1/2010
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