Australian toothfish operators have responded to false claims made by a Hobart-based NGO group. This response is detailed below: The Australian toothfish fishing industry comprises two Australian fishing companies – Perth based, Austral Fisheries Pty Ltd, and Hobart based Australian Longline Fishing Pty Ltd. Australia’s Toothfish fisheries sit within the Australian EEZs surrounding Heard Island and Macquarie Island, and are …
Toothfish – Precautionary Development of a Deep Water Fishery
Source: CCAMLR 40th Anniversary blog series When CCAMLR started its work, in the 1980s, whaling, sealing and fishing had been taking place in the Antarctic for many decades. Sealers first hunted fur seals for their pelts in 1790. By 1825, some populations of fur seals were close to extinction, and sealers began hunting elephant seals and some species of penguins …
Argentina begins FIP to obtain MSC certification for Patagonian toothfish
Four fishing companies in Argentina are implementing a Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) with the aim of attaining Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification by March 2025 for the country’s Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) fishery. The companies – Estremar, Nueva Pescanova, Pesantar, and San Arawa – are working to implement the Argentine FIP with technical support from Latin American NGO CeDePesca, according …
COLTO on National Science Week
This week, COLTO’s Executive Officer, Rhys Arangio, spoke with the Marine Stewardship Council, and CCAMLR Executive Secretary, David Agnew on ‘Fishing in Antarctica’ as part of National Science Week. The live event included questions from school children across Australia as they learnt why toothfish don’t freeze in Antarctica!
COLTO Member rescue mission in Pacific Ocean
On Saturday 14 July, COLTO Member, TNS Industries Inc. (formerly Sun Woo Corporation) of South Korea, were contacted by the US Coastguard to help with a rescue mission of the pleasure yatch, LINDA ELLEN, after the vessel was hit by a severe weather squall and was in danger of sinking. TNS’s toothfish vessel, BLUE OCEAN, was transiting from Busan, South …
COLTO acknowledged by Stockholm Resilience Centre
In a paper released today by the Stockholm Resilience Centre, COLTO has been acknowledged for its early work in helping to eradicate IUU fishing of toothfish in the Southern Ocean and its stewardship since of the toothfish resource. Abstract: Humanity has never benefited more from the ocean as a source of food, livelihoods, and well-being, yet on a global scale …
Blockchain: Hook to Plate
Could using digital tags to track fish reduce seafood fraud, help conservation and hold everyone in the supply chain to account? In recent weeks, a new $50m (£35m) hybrid vessel set sail from Mauritius and headed out into the Southern Ocean where the crew will spend three months longline fishing for the Patagonian toothfish. By the time the fish are …
Austral CEO talks Carbon Neutral
David Carter, CEO of Austral Fisheries, a COLTO founding member, recently sat down with Zero-Carbon 2030, to talk about the steps Austral took in 2016 to become the first fishing company in the world to be certified Carbon Neutral. Austral Fisheries has also signed up to the Zero-Carbon 2030 commitments and is the first company to received a AAA Carbon …
CFL lead longline fishing benthic impact study in Falklands
Consolidated Fisheries Limited (CFL) is leading a landmark research project into the impact of longline fishing on benthic habitats in their goal to ensure the continued sustainability of their fishing practices in Falklands waters. As a toothfish fishing company with Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification since 2014, CFL has strengthened its commitment to meeting the highest environmental standards in its …
Austral CEO talks Carbon Neutrality at TEDx
In early 2021, David Carter, CEO of Austral Fisheries, one of COLTO’s founding members, spoke at TEDxPerth about the journey Austral Fisheries began in 2015 to make its entire business carbon neutral – from its toothfish fleet in the south, to its prawn fleet in the north, and all the bits in between. He explains why and how he did …
Sounding out life in the deep using acoustic data from ships of opportunity
Since 2010, COLTO Members, Australian Longline, Austral Fisheries, Talley’s Group and the Sealord Group have provided their fishing vessels as ships of opportunity to shed light on the distribution and ecosystem function of mesopelagic communities in the twilight zone (~200–1000 m depth) of global oceans to bridge the gap in estimates of species biomass, trophic linkages, and carbon sequestration role. This …
Australian Longline first company to receive RFVS Certificate
COLTO Member, Australian Longline Fishing has become the first fishing company in the world to have a vessel certified to the Global Seafood Assurance Responsible Fishing Vessel Standard (RFVS). The vessel in question is Antarctic Discovery, a 55-meter longliner with a crew of 20-25, plus two observers, operating in the MSC certified toothfish fisheries around Macquarie Island and in the …
Spotlight on South Georgia
This excerpt was taken from a guest blog written by Sue Gregory, Marine Environment and Fisheries Manger for the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI). Sue is responsible for the day-to-day operation of South Georgia’s fisheries and Marine Protected Area, she works closely with the Director of Fisheries and Environment and the Government Officers at King …
Australian Longline launch Antarctic Aurora
COLTO Member, Australian Longline, is excited to introduce the 62 metre Antarctic Aurora to its fleet to operate within the toothfish fisheries that are managed by CCAMLR and AFMA under the strictest environmental conditions found in any fishery in the world. This deepwater longline vessel has been purposefully designed and built to catch fish from depths down to 2000 metres …
Korean researchers decipher entire chromosome of Antarctic toothfish
South Korean researchers led by the government-funded Korea Polar Research Institute have deciphered the entire chromosome of the Antarctic toothfish known fatty deposits that act as a stored energy source. Antifreeze glycoproteins allow the toothfish to thrive in subzero waters. The Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI) said on December 30 that it has worked with researchers from Korea University, Pukyong …
2019/20 CCAMLR Tag Return Lottery winners announced
In 2020 COLTO once again sponsored the CCAMLR Tag Return Lottery to promote awareness in CCAMLR’s toothfish tagging program in exploratory toothfish fisheries. As in previous years, three winners were drawn at random by the CCAMLR Secretariat from the recaptures reported during this season. This year we are delighted to announce the following winners: First prize ($400) goes to the …
South Georgia – A visitor’s guide
The Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) has announced the launch of its new film ‘South Georgia – A Visitor’s Guide’, narrated by Sir David Attenborough. The film has two key messages; firstly, it encourages visitors to respect and protect the island so their visit can be truly sustainable, but there is another message which is …
Unique Combination: Austral’s new vessel about to launch
There could hardly be a longer delivery trip. Cape Arkona set off from Måløy in Norway to steam for 44 days to reach Fremantle in Western Australia, due to arrive in late August. -written by Quentin Bates, Hook and Net Magazine There’s a startling amount of both technology and clear thinking packed into Cape Arkona’s 68 metres, and this new vessel …
San Aotea II halfway to Falklands on crew retrieval mission
Morale is high aboard the San Aspiring in the Southern Ocean after 15 kiwi fishermen learnt their retrieval boat is halfway to collect them. The vessel is located off the Falkland Islands, off the coast of South America, fishing for toothfish, and many of the men have been at sea for more than 140 days because of Covid-19. The San …
MSC’s lifetime achievement award to Austral CEO
David Carter is the CEO of the world’s first carbon-neutral commercial fishing company Marine Stewardship Council’s Lifetime Achievement award winner and Austral Fisheries CEO reveals the state of Australia’s seafood business. David Carter has worked his entire career – from deckhand to CEO – at one of Australia’s largest commercial fishing companies. This year marks his 42nd anniversary with Austral …
Sanford to undertake COVID retrieval mission
A one-off 50-day voyage to retrieve 15 Kiwi fishermen from a deepwater trawler in the Southern Atlantic Ocean will depart Timaru on Friday night because there is no other viable way to get them home. Sanford deep water fleet manager Darryn Shaw said the trip to the South Georgia Islands had been made necessary due to the impacts of Covid-19, …
Toothfish eggs collected in Ross Sea
The New Zealand longline fishing vessel, Janas, owned and operated by COLTO Member, Talley’s Group Ltd, has recently returned from a six-week winter research voyage to the Ross Sea where scientists made the first observations of developing Antarctic toothfish embryos. NIWA principal fisheries scientist Dr Steve Parker and colleagues were on board the Janas for the second voyage ever during …
COLTO CCAMLR Toothfish Tag Lottery results
COLTO is pleased to be able to announce the winners of the 2018/19 CCAMLR toothfish tag return lottery. This year’s winners were selected at random by the CCAMLR Secretariat from tag returns in CCAMLR’s Exploratory fisheries, with the results as follows: 1st place went to the Spanish flagged vessel, Tronio, returning a tag from an Antarctic toothfish tagged in subarea …
South African Toothfish improves to ‘Good Alternative’
The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program this week released an update to their rating of South Africa’s Prince Edward and Marion Islands Patagonian Toothfish fishery from ‘Avoid’ to ‘Good Alternative’. The fishery has improved on Criterions 1 (Impacts on target species), 3 (Management Effectiveness) and 4 (Habitat and Ecosystem), while has received a lower score for Criterion 2 (Impacts …
Estremar help with Argentine Toothfish research
For the third consecutive year, Argentinia’s National Institute for Fisheries Research and Development (INIDEP) carried out an evaluation campaign for juvenile Patagonian Toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) aboard the Centurión del Atlántico fishing vessel belonging to COLTO Member, Estremar. The campaign proposed by INIDEP, includes a trawl survey of 20 sets with a predetermined geographical position and duration. The main objective is …
Argenova Toothfish facilities on show
The president of the Regional Government of Galacia visits the facilities of Argenova, a subsidiary of Nueva Pescanova in Argentina The president of the Regional Government of Galicia , Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has been in Argentina to visit Galician fishing companies with a presence in the country. Taking advantage of this trip, the president visited yesterday Argenova’s toothfish processing plant. …
Toothfish research draws scientists, seafarers back for second Antarctic journey
Having broken the ice three years ago, a Nelson-based longliner is making a return voyage to the Antarctic to gain further insights into the world of toothfish. The Talley’s-owned FV Janas sailed last week to the northern Ross Sea region to carry out a winter scientific research survey. This is the second such trip for the Janas, having successfully completed …
COLTO Member part of ‘Impact Tech’ launch
OpenSC, an impact venture developed in partnership by the World Wide Fund for Nature Australia (WWF-Australia) and BCG Digital Ventures (BCGDV), the global corporate venture, investment, and incubation arm of Boston Consulting Group, today announced that OpenSC has raised $4 million in seed funding from strategic impact investors. The funds will be used to further the development of OpenSC’s digital …
IUU vessel Nika apprehended
– from Global Fishing Watch A notorious vessel wanted in several jurisdictions was recently seized by Indonesia. Here’s the story of how international cooperation between INTERPOL, Indonesia, the Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) – UK, Korea and Panama, together with Global Fishing Watch’s vessel tracking expertise, helped make it happen. On the morning of Friday …
COLTO-CCAMLR Toothfish Data Workshop
The COLTO-CCAMLR Toothfish Catch and Effort Data Workshop that took place in Cape Town between July 30 and August 1 2019 was another positive collaborative effort between CCAMLR, CCAMLR scientists, and the toothfish fishing industry, and was considered a success by the 35 attendees that participated. The objectives of the workshop were to improve the CCAMLR catch and effort data …
Former COLTO Chair takes reins at SeaBOS
Centre-facilitated initiative on ocean sustainability appoints Martin Exel as new managing director Announcement part of next phase of the Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBOS), a joint initiative between the world’s largest commercial seafood companies and science to strengthen sustainable practices within the seafood industry Martin Exel will take up the position as managing director for SeaBOS from 1 July …
Photographer’s wild southern fishing trip
Blenheim-based photographer Tazmin Henderson grabbed the chance to go on a toothfishing vessel to the South Atlantic. She wrote about her challenging experience. In November 2018, I read that Argos Froyanes Ltd had launched two new vessels for toothfishing in the Ross Sea. Argos Georgia and Nordic Prince are state of the art long-liners, sitting at 54 metres long and …
COLTO Members contribute to reducing microfibre pollution
It is estimated that 8 million tonnes of plastic pollution enters the oceans each year. While densities of large plastic debris can be monitored when washed up on beaches or recorded in incidents of ingestion or entanglement, there is a growing concern regarding microplastics. The standard definition of microplastics is plastic particles that are less than 5 mm in diameter. …
Toothfish tag recovered in Western Australia
A toothfish tag made its way back to CCAMLR in a very unusual way. The tag in question, A289770, which was released on a Patagonian toothfish in December 2015 around Prince Edward and Marion Islands, has managed to find its way over 6 700 km to the Western Australian coastline. The unusual discovery was made by Marine Park Ranger Peter …
Youthful Toothfish Abound
They live more than 1000 metres below the surface in the coldest darkest parts of the Southern Ocean, but the elusive juvenile Antarctic toothfish hold some of the most important insights into the future of the Ross Sea population. This year’s toothfish survey supported by Antarctica New Zealand shows juvenile stocks are up. NIWA Principal Fisheries Scientist Dr Steve Parker …
Ecuador cooperating with CCAMLR on toothfish
At CCAMLR-XXXVII, the CCAMLR community recognised Ecuador as a Non-Contracting Party (NCP) cooperating with CCAMLR though participation in the CDS. The recognition of this status for Ecuador is the result of two years of discussion and consideration by the Commission. Ecuador successfully demonstrated its commitment and capability to meet the objectives of and implement Conservation Measure 10-05. In February 2019, …
Whale depredation paper from COLTO Member fisheries published in Nature
Dr. Paul Tixier’s work on whale depredation in toothfish fisheries continues with a recent paper released by the Nature Research Journal’s Scientific Reports, titled, Commercial fishing patterns influence odontocete whale-longline interactions in the Southern Ocean. This paper uses long-term (2003–2017) datasets from seven major Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) longline fisheries, to assess the levels and inter-annual trends of sperm whale …
Scientists return from Antarctic voyage
After travelling almost 12,000km in the past six weeks, a group of scientists returns to Wellington at the weekend with new knowledge about life in the Ross Sea of Antarctica. NIWA’s research vessel Tangaroa docks on Saturday morning after successfully completing research that covered all areas of the ecosystem from bacteria to whales. The 21 scientists, supported by 19 crew, …
Korea fails to sanction non-compliant vessels
The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) reports that the South Korean government did not live up to its promise to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing when it failed to sanction two vessels that caught 70 tons of toothfish in Antarctic waters, instead allowing the owner to sell its landings on the global market. COLTO notes that these two vessels …
Austral to use blockchain to track toothfish
WWF-Australia and BCG Digital Ventures launched a revolutionary new digital platform that uses blockchain and other technologies to track food and products, and that will help people and business to avoid illegal, environmentally-damaging or unethical products. Austral Fisheries, based in Perth, were chosen as the industry partner for this launch, whose ‘Glacier 51 Toothfish’ will be the centerpiece in displaying …
Peru sets new toothfish quota
The Ministry of Production (PRODUCE) has established the maximum allowable catch of the Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides) resource for the current year at 161 tonnes. According to Ministerial Resolution N ° 007-2019-PRODUCE, the quota may be modified if the Institute of the Sea of Peru (IMARPE) evidences a greater availability of the resource, for which purpose it shall remit the …
French toothfish fisheries’ MSC certification renewed
The Kerguelen and Crozet toothfish fishery renews its MSC certification for sustainable fishing On 20th December, the longlining toothfish fishery around the Kerguelen and Crozet Islands in the southern seas (Southern Indian and Antarctic Oceans) confirmed its sustainable fishing practices by renewing its MSC certification. The French fishing companies concerned, members of the SARPC*, passed the evaluation according to the …
New vessel ordered for Australian Longline
Australian Longline, based in Hobart, Tasmania, has placed an order for a new factory longliner for delivery in 2020. The Tasmanian company went to Skipsteknisk in Norway for the design package for the ST-156L autoliner, developed for fishing toothfish in Antarctic waters. The new vessel is to be built at Vard Group’s shipyard in Vietnam and is scheduled for delivery …
Piriou delivers Southern Ocean longliner to Comata
An ice-class longliner designed for fishing toothfish in the Southern Ocean has been built at Piriou’s Vietnamese shipyard for French fishing company Comata. The new longliner was christened in La Réunion and will start fishing in French Southern and Antartic Territories. Designed by Piriou Ingenierie, Île de la Reunion II was ordered in July 2017. It has an overall length …
EXTERNAL REVIEW OF FALKLANDS TOOTHFISH FISHERY
PRESS RELEASE -from Falkland Islands Fisheries Department A full review of the stock assessment and management of the longline toothfish fishery in the Falkland Islands was conducted in 2018 by Dr Mike Bergh of OLSPS Marine for the Falkland Islands Government. The objective of the review was to provide an independent and external perspective on the current status of the …
Thwarted Again: Poaching Vessels Still Stuck in Cabo Verde
The two vessels, formerly known as Yongding and Songhua, are Still Stuck in Cabo Verde Back in May 2015, Sea Shepherd tipped off police in the West African Republic of Cabo Verde about the presence of two black-listed illegal fishing vessels sought by Interpol hiding out in their port (read the article here). The Cabo Verde Judicial Police detained the …
Falklands Toothfish re-certified by MSC
From Consolidated Fisheries Ltd PRESS RELEASE Consolidated Fisheries Ltd and the Falkland Islands Fisheries Department are pleased to announce that re-certification of the Falkland Islands longline toothfish fishery under the Marine Stewardship Council’s Principles of Sustainability was granted on the 5th November 2018 for a period of 5 years. The fishery was first certified in March 2014, the first and …
CCAMLR 2018 summary
Today sees the close of the Thirty-seventh Meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Hobart, Australia. Early in October, scientists met to review the status and trends of fish stocks regulated by CCAMLR. The Scientific Committee subsequently reviewed the outcomes of that meeting, and the outcomes of several other specialist working groups responsible …
CCAMLR toothfish tag return lottery results
COLTO is pleased to be able to promote collaboration between the fishing industry and science by again sponsoring the 2017/18 CCAMLR toothfish tag return lottery. This year’s winners were selected at random by the CCAMLR Secretariat from tag returns in CCAMLR’s Exploratory fisheries, with the results as follows: 1st place went to the Korean flagged vessel, Kostar, returning a tag …
Headless Chicken Monster filmed near Heard Island
The Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) has filmed a highly unusual sea cucumber, marking the first time it has been spotted in the depths of the Southern Ocean. The deep-sea sea cucumber Enypniastes eximia — aka the ‘headless chicken monster’ — was sighted using new AAD underwater cameras deployed by fishing boats operating in Antarctica. AAD research scientist Dirk Welsford said …