small-scale fisheries

“Fish is the perfect protein” says Oceana Chief Policy Officer, Jacqueline Savitz. We couldn’t agree more. And nothing makes us happier than seeing this, and the rationale for why, shared in a recent article in Forbes — a publication primarily focused on business, finance, and investment. It’s not your typical environmental magazine. And that’s because empowering sustainable fisheries is as much an effort to address food security and livelihoods as it is about environmental protection.

Historias de pesca: René Jara (Versión en Español más abajo) René Jara, also known as "Patolín", was born in Duao, a fishing cove in the Maule region of Chile. He began fishing when he was 15, and now — at 28 — he’s an expert in the art, catching hake, squid, crab, and elephant fish among other species. For René, fishing runs in the family: he credits his father for teaching him everything he knows.

Pedro is a fisher from Chorrillos, a coastal area on the Southern outskirts of Lima in Peru. For Pedro, fishing is a lifestyle: his dad taught him how to fish at age 13, and he started fishing with his uncles at age 14, almost thirty years ago. He has made his living from the ocean ever since. Fishing for swordfish, mahi mahi, and other species up to one hundred miles from the coast, Pedro is intimately familiar with the ocean and ports across Lima Municipality.

(Versión en Español más abajo) As part of Future or Fish’s response to COVID-19 in Peru, two things became clear: mobility restrictions were severely hindering logistics, and demand had dropped significantly. In a matter of weeks, COVID-19 had changed the way people access and consume seafood in Peru — a pattern experienced by seafood supply chains globally.

Fishers are essential workers, but what happens when they don’t have the gear they need to work safely in a pandemic? This week, Future of Fish launches a new campaign in partnership with fishers from La Islilla, Peru, to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to the fishers and seafood workers who need it most.

Workers in small scale fisheries make up over 90% of all seafood employees. These small fisheries, spread from Chile to Belize to Vietnam, catch 50% of the seafood eaten around the world. Small scale fishing can be a hard life — long days on the water, stock fluctuations due to climate change or overfishing, and often low prices. Still: fishing is a lifestyle, a living, a tradition, and a way to support families and communities. For small scale fishers who want to improve their practices, modernize their operations, or make changes to ensure they’re fishing sustainably, support and resources can be hard to come by. We’re out to change that.

Ever since she was a little girl, Patricia Purizaca accompanied her mother to work at the Máncora pier. Two years ago, when her mother got sick, Patricia decided to leave her job in the district municipality and start her own business, a small restaurant stand on the dock by that very same pier. This is where she greets fishermen returning from their long work at sea, fish handlers, and the occasional tourist who is interested in the reality of the people who make their living from the ocean.

Luis Solís, born and raised in the commune of Renca, is a tireless worker and champion for his community, dedicated to working with small scale producers and businesses to improve food supply chains and access to nutritious food for all Chileans. Over the course of his career in both the private and public sectors, he observed a lack of connection and organization between workers causing inefficiencies in the food supply system, as well as a growing concern over the declining nutrition, health, and wellbeing of his fellow Chileans. Luis’s passion for finding solutions to these two issues drive the work he does today.

Abril 30, 2020 Durante una pandemia mundial, ¿qué sucede con los pescadores de mundo? Esta semana, el ONG Future of Fish anunció sus planes para apoyar a los pescadores y a las comunidades pesqueras en este momento sin precedente. La propagación y los efectos devastadores de la pandemia COVID-19 han paralizado un gran parte del mundo. Pero los peces siguen nadando como de costumbre, y los pescadores a menor escala de todo el mundo siguen dependiendo de los océanos para su sustento, y la seguridad alimentaria de sus comunidades. Pero los pescadores están en aprietos, dado que miles de millones de personas están confinadas en sus casas, la economía mundial está en crisis, las cadenas de suministro se han interrumpido, y ya no pueden vender o distribuir su pescado como de costumbre.

During a global pandemic, what happens to the world’s fishermen? This week, nonprofit Future of Fish announced its plans for supporting fishers and fishing communities in this unprecedented time.
 The spread and devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought much of the world to a standstill. But fish are still swimming as usual, and small-scale fishers around the globe still depend on the oceans for their livelihood, and their communities’ food security.