Eating, it's what we do

Pondering popping a few peanuts in your mouth for a quick snack to spending hours grafting over a hot stove to keep those demon hunger pangs at bay fills a good deal of our daily lives. For some, and all too many in the world, popping a few peanuts might constitute a feast while for others agonising over a whether to have a Pétrus and Romanée Conti to accompany their filet might be their greatest concern.

On a day-to-day basis most of us find ourselves in some sort of middle ground  with the occasional foray to either end of the eating spectrum depending on circumstances - from a drive in Big Mac out of desperation to blowing a little more at a recommended local eatery.

Sometimes, perhaps once in a lifetime or less, the opportunity to enter into to some sort of gastronomic Twilight Zone might come along. So when Rob and Di Coke won themselves a 'meal for two' prize, did they ever for one moment think that at some stage during said meal they would carefully investigate a small kilner jar full of ice by releasing the lid only to have live shrimp make an immediate bid for freedom - intrigued? 

Read on.

Saving the Atlantic Menhaden Fisheries!

Take Action for the Menhaden Fishery: Tell the ASMFC Not to Hurt Working Families Before the Facts are In! - so begins a plea to help save the Atlantic Menhaden Fisheries

The ASMFC is considering harvest restrictions that could threaten the future of the menhaden fishery and thousands of families who depend on it. Please let the ASMFC know that you care by sharing your concerns below. We've done the leg work for you by drafting up a form letter, so please take a moment to sign the attached letter and show the ASMFC that you stand with the menhaden fishery. 


According to Nils Stolpe, the Pew people, with the help of recreational fishermen and their billions of dollars, are campaigning to short circuit the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's menhaden management program, and they're using their usual distortions to do it.

 This isn't just about menhaden, as important as that fishery is. It's about Pew's willingness to go outside the management system and to use political pressure that they've created when they can't get their way with the Councils, NMFS or the Commissions, and if they prevail it's going to have negative repercussions for all of us.

The Maine Lobstermen's Association, among others, is urging their members to sign the petition by the industry group Saving Menhaden Fisheries.

The petition is at http://letter.savingmenhaden.org/

If you want to take a significant step in insuring that our management system in based on solid science, not foundation induced hysteria, take the two minutes to go to the petition site and sign on, but do it before 5:00 tomorrow, which is when the comment period closes. And please forward this message to as many people as you can.

Thanks, Nils

1,100 Chilean fishermen march 350 miles to Santiago in protest of Ley Longuiera - Fishing Laws

About 1,100 fishermen boarded buses in the Bío Bío region to take the long trip to march in the center of Santiago.

Fishermen from Bío Bío feel that their livelihood is being threatened by new fishing laws. Photo: redfive

BÍO BÍO — The buses began heading out yesterday on Route 5 towards Santiago and should arrive tomorrow. The fishermen are marching against the Ley de Pesca, also known as the Ley Longuiera.

The Senate has approved many of the motions of the law, which local fishermen say threaten their livelihood. So, many have gathered to march on La Moneda in protest. They plan to formally submit a petition to the government demanding that the current text of the law be revised to take their grievances into consideration.

The march includes fishermen from Coronel, Talcahuano, Tumbes, and San Vicente.

“We are going to go directly to La Moneda, since the Senate has done nothing after we lobbied against the law. Now is the time to talk directly to the government,” said march organizer Marta Espinoza.

Some of the main reasons the fishermen will be protesting is the regionalization of fishing registrations, the prohibition of fishing within the first nautical mile of the coast, and the installation of satellites on board boats.

As the public’s reaction to the new law escalated, fishermen from all around the country initiated the campaign Yo Pesco, which rapidly involved more than 87,000 people through the social networks. Its main objective is to put pressure on the Senate by letting people directly express their opinion via Twitter and Facebook.  Moreover, it is an appeal to the public to learn more about how the fishing industry is administered in Chile.

One of the official videos of the campaign gathers famous Chilean actors and celebrities in order to clarify their stance against the Ley Longueira.

Story courtesy of the iLoveChile web site.

Charting a Course to Sustainable Fisheries

The Blue Charity debate gets louder and louder - right now there's an interesting dialogue developing tonight on a Linked In page - which will require careful analysis. 

Adding to the list of sites providing NGO funding activity here's the openng paragraph from the Charting a Course to Sustainable Fishing web site in the US:

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the Oak Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation are pleased to share California Environmental Associates’ report, Charting a Course to Sustainable Fisheries. Over 100 scientists and conservation professionals were involved in the development of Charting a Course to Sustainable Fisheries. We would like to thank everyone who took the time to contribute to and review this material. We believe that the resulting, comprehensive assessment and the data it contains will be a valuable resource to inform the work of any institution working on overfishing and sustainable seafood issues.

Cod TAC for 2012 - the problem remains without an easy solution in sight

A gorgeous example of a Cornish cod, no tagged cod caught in ICES Area VII has ever been caught outside of these waters,  suggesting that the stock is native to these waters...

however, a look at the TAC for Area VII cod taken from the current data table shows just how unfairly UK fishermen feel the system is - with the base data taken from a time (the late 1970s) when very few Cornish  boats actually fished for cod the fleet now has around 10% of the remaining quota. Worse still, the stocks of cod have increased steadily over the years raising the levels of unwanted over-quota fish at certain times of the year.

Enjoy 60 year old film of the Newlyn sidewinder Jacqueline trawling off the Wolf and in Mount's Bay.

Filmed just after the Second World War aboard the Newlyn sidewinder Jacqueline. The boat was an ex-Admiralty MFV (motorised fishing vessel) built during the war and bought by Stevenson and Sons to trawl from Newlyn. She was only broken up a few years ago after a lifetime spent sidewinding off the Cornish coast.  Stevenson's longest serving engineer spent most of his working life a engineer aboard the Jacqueline.

First off are a series of photos taken when she was still fishing in the late 1980s and 90s...

The rest of the wooden sidewinder fleet can be seen in this photo from around1978...

bringing the otter trawl in over the rail aided by the roll of the boat...

gutting the haul...

running repairs to the more modern steel not wooden doors...

Enjoy these two British Pathe clips that cover an entire trip.

It would be good if the skipper and crew could be identified from the footage shot.

TRAWLING

TRAWLING - OUT-TAKES Reel 1

Dwindling cuttlefish catch worries local fishermen!

Don't worry, this story comes from India where thousands of fishermen are worried for the state of cuttlefish stocks threatened by yes, you guessed it, illegal fishing!

They threaten to launch agitation if illegal fishing of this species is not curbed!

Expressing serious concern over “dwindling catch” of cuttlefish – it fetches over Rs. 150 a kg (£1.70 per kg) in domestic market and is exported at a far higher rate – fishermen have threatened to launch agitation if illegal fishing of the species is not curbed.

The fishermen fear cuttlefish would vanish from the west coast if the use of a banned method to catch it allegedly resorted to by fishermen from other States is not stopped immediately. A fishermen’s leader put the drop in the catch by about 75 per cent in the last five years based on “his own experience”. The illegal method of catching cuttlefish – known as chouri locally – involves dropping the trunk of coconut palm in waters near boulders. When it decays, the fish is believed to get attracted and is caught.

Allegation

It is alleged that fishermen from other States caught the fish even during its peak breeding season from October to February thereby adversely affecting its population. However there is no independent scientific study to corroborate their fears. Both Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute and College of Fisheries said they have not conducted any study on these lines. The Deputy Director Fisheries Sureshkumar Ullal claimed that cuttlefish catch was good in the current season, contrary to what is feared.

However, Coastal Karnataka Fishermen Action Committee and Fishers Malple Fishermen Deep Sea Trawl Boat Association have threatened to launch an agitation over the issue.

Leaders of the two organisations allege that some of the fishermen from Tamil Nadu, who engage in fishing in Mangalore and Malpe coasts for the entire season resorted to banned method and also caught cuttlefish using hooks. The Malpe Association President Gopal Kunder and Action Committee Working President Loknath Bolar said alleged wrongdoings of fishermen from other States have been brought to the notice of the authorities repeatedly but to no avail. Mr. Kunder said the fish catch was down by 75 per cent in five years. He has been in the field since 1992, he said.

The Deputy Director said associations had not provided any proof to say that fishermen from other States were using banned method of fishing. He said the department would initiate action if proof is given.

Mr. Bolar and Mr. Kunder alleged that the department was only shirking its responsibility of keeping a vigil on fishing activities.They sought intervention of Deputy Commissioners of the two districts to ensure that the ban is implemented effectively.

Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner N.S. Channappa Gowda said he would discuss this with the Deputy Director (Fisheries).

Story courtesy of The Hindu.