traceability

It's the Information Age. And, if you, like us, wonder how developments in information and communication technologies (ICT) can help advance sustainability and traceability in small-scale fisheries...then read on! FishWise and Seafood Alliance for Legality and Traceability (SALT) Project Director Traci Linder and Future of Fish (FoF) Traceability Program Director Fiona Mulligan recently attended the ICT4Fisheries 2019 conference and came away with five top learnings we found repeated across geographies and cultures.

Earlier this year, Future of Fish undertook a research project on fisheries data modernization efforts across governments. From this work we’ve come up with a proposed definition for ‘government data modernization’ and we want to know what you think.

It’s been a strong year for fisheries improvement in Chile. As we wrote about in January, the government kicked-off 2019 with passage of a modernization law to strengthen enforcement and transparency across Chile’s extensive fisheries and supply chains. As part of this effort, Future of Fish is excited to continue our partnership with SERNAPESCA to improve data systems and build stronger infrastructure for protection and improvement of Chile’s fisheries—a partnership that was made official on July 17, 2019, through the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

Over the last year, Future of Fish has been working through a co-design process with four Chilean artisanal hake caletas, leading them through idea development, business modelling and most recently to the finalisation of business plans.

World Ocean Day was June 8, and we loved hearing about all the inspiring projects and activists working to improve the health of our oceans. This year’s focus was “gender and the ocean,” a topic very dear to our hearts. 

Of course, work to protect marine environments and create thriving fisheries is a year-round job, so this week we’re continuing the appreciation for ocean advocates by giving props to some of our favorite women in fisheries.

The fish tech space is growing, and fast. It was just a few years back that industry folks and nonprofits alike were trying to get their heads around what end-to-end traceability might look like and which technologies might be used to facilitate it. Since then, we’ve seen technologies such as blockchain, electronic monitoring, and machine learning make a splash in the seafood and ocean conservation spaces. With the exploding number of companies and initiatives, it can be hard to keep up.

Chile is taking a big step forward in the fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing with the Chilean Senate’s approval of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (SERNAPESCA) modernization project. These new regulations modernize SERNAPESCA, giving it more power to fight illegal fishing and punish the supply chain players who trade in—and profit from—illegally caught seafood.

The organizations working on seafood sustainability and traceability are many, and they’re mighty. Historically, though, there’s been little support for them to work together to solve problems and amplify their efforts.

Empowering small-scale fisheries on a global stage