Statistically Speaking, 2014 Was Well Below The Gunwale

With the South African tuna season starting off rather slower than anticipated, historically a different picture has been portrayed with this season having only a combined landing of below 200 tons as opposed to previous years average of around 1400 tons for November/ December period. (I do suspect on good authority that this figure is in fact incorrect.)

Bad weather has left the majority of the SA Pole and Line fleet docked in port whilst some of the smaller more economical vessels have chosen to brave the short weather periods with a mixed bag of results. With strong South Easterly winds fetching large South West swells, the opportunities have been restricted to only a 2 to 3 fish-able days before the North Wester picks up sending all vessels in search of their home or nearest port for refuge. This morning the hake long liner Christo Rei snapped her bow lines on the North Mole, Hout Bay in some serious South Easterly gusts, hence why my vessels were discharging today what little catches they had.

The majority of the albacore that has been landed was concentrated in smaller shoals with no sign as of yet of the larger biomass of albacore having been witnessed on the decks. Below is the graph from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries - Research & Development Branch which indicates the albacore tuna catching frequencies on a monthly/ annual basis for a comparative understanding:

So far the 2014/1025 season hasn't had much to show for itself, but this can change within a fortnight as has been experienced in the past. With the smaller volumes keeping the demand up, the albacore price is expected to remain relatively high provided the Rand doesn't strengthen further against the Euro and whilst the New Zealand pole and line season doesn't start. We can expect the decent raw material price to remain at its current level ensuring a welcomed return to the vessels.

The local yellow fin market has been able to consume the quantities landed of the smaller yellow fin (under 30kgs & over 50kgs) due to the irregular weather gaps allowing for the market to rebound in time of the next landings. This will remain so until the rest of the fleet start landing fresh yellow fin. The larger yellow fin (50kgs+) has found some good returns in the American market which does not have a size stipulation unlike the European Union's concerns over mercury.

With this week's maritime forecast being a blow out...the vessels will most likely look to depart on Saturday only. With a select few vessels having had some good landings, the majority of the fleet and exporters remain understandably apprehensive and somewhat nervous. 

The Basin Effect

I recently read an interesting article online which highlights some poignant issues effecting our inshore fish species. I do recommend that you take a few minutes to educate yourself on these issues. For ease of reference I have copied the article here below for you:

‘The Basin Effect’, a common phenomenon that fools us all: Towards an understanding of the

plight of coastal fishes in South Africa

By Dr Nadine A. Strydom and Ms Sandrini Moodley

Zoology Department, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

“The Bountiful Ocean” are words used by poets, artists, early mariners, fisher folk and even 

scientists once upon a time. We have all romanticized about what the ocean has to offer – those 

unseen riches, poised to take our carefully prepared bait, smash our surface plug or get snagged in 

our nets. Advancements in fisheries science have highlighted the fact that we are often under 

misconceptions about what we catch and how many there are out there. 

One of the amazing things about fishermen – whether they are recreational fishermen or 

fishermen by trade – is that they always seem to know where the fish are. This has been a 

characteristic of fishermen for hundreds of years and mostly comes from experience, and 

knowledge of the fishing areas. Fishermen pride themselves in this knowing but herein lies the 

problem. In recent decades, this skill has been replaced by overwhelming improvements in 

technology such as GPS, cellphones, acoustic technology etc. which allow fishermen and fishing 

vessels to detect target species and target fishing areas with pinpoint accuracy. The fact that we as 

fisher folk can figure these things out through ancient knowledge or our fish finder, tells us 

something about fish behavior. It is well known that fish tend to aggregate around structure for 

refuge, areas of high productivity for food or areas of significance for spawning. These are the 

areas that are known to fishermen as the ‘best fishing spots’. 

The fact that fish tend to aggregate in particular areas and that it can be predicted that the fish will 

be present in those areas at specific times of the year, tide state, moon phase, night time etc. also 

leads to a concentration of fishermen in these areas. This characteristic of fish behaviour means 

that fish populations are neither evenly nor randomly distributed through-out the oceans – fish 

have preferences as to the areas they occupy based on many factors such as food resources, 

protection or spawning. This being said, once the preferred habitats of a target species are known, 

it becomes much easier for fishermen to catch that species. Aggregations of fish also make it much 

easier to catch more fish. This makes fishermen very happy and leaves scientists around the world 

gravely concerned. Herewith follows the conundrum. 

In areas of high fish abundance, fishermen need to put in less effort in order to get higher outputs 

of fish than they would in areas of lower abundance. This means that when the catch per unit 

effort (CPUE) is calculated in these areas by scientists trying to manage recreational or commercial 

fisheries, it indicates that relatively low effort was required to gain high catches – ‘there must be 

many fish around’. The CPUE is traditionally used in fisheries science as a measure of fish 

abundance but the number of fish you catch per unit time is also used unknowingly by fishermen 

as a measure of the amount of fish around to catch. However, due to the high concentration of 

the fish in a limited area because of unseen benefits to the fishes to be there, the CPUE value is 

actually inflated. This is known as the ‘Basin Effect’ – the effect of the accumulation of fish in a 

localized area on fishing success. If the same fish population was to be randomly and evenly 

spread over a larger area, the number of fish caught applying the same amount of effort would be 

much less. This presents us with the basis of the misconception.

The elevated CPUE values caused by the Basin Effect leads to overestimations of stock size in the minds of recreational and commercial fishermen, often resulting in escalated quotas, and ultimately unsustainable fishing practices. It is therefore actually very hard to estimate the number of fishes in the sea without biasing our estimates. Most of the information used by fisheries managers around the work is fishery-dependent data – information coming from the fishermen themselves. Recreational and commercial catch records are biased because we know where to find our target species and how to catch them.

Fisheries evidence of this misconception can be found in the case of northern cod (Gadus morhua) 

populations in the Canadian town of Bonavista. In areas of the Bonavista corridor where the fish 

were known to be hyper aggregating (increasing in density while their biomass decreased), the 

CPUE increased between the years of 1980 and 1990. Interestingly, in the region of the corridor 

where the fish were not hyper aggregating, the CPUE decreased during this period. Overall, the 

population was in decline, but the inflated CPUE at the site where the fish were hyper aggregating 

masked this crisis. 

The aggregating behaviour of Orange Roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus), a deep-sea perch has also 

resulted in a population collapse off Australia. This species was heavily exploited in a fishery in the 

area since the 1970’s. The fish were caught in large numbers and soon the species was showing 

major decline in areas off Tasmania. It was not known at the time that the large numbers caught 

where large proportions of the population that were aggregating to spawn. Overfishing on 

spawning grounds has now left this long-lived, slow growing species highly threatened. These fish 

have been aged to 149 years and in 20 years the population has been reduced to a fraction of 

pristine stock.

Fortunately, once these types of problems were identified in fisheries, scientists could recalculate 

and management strategies were put into place to curb the decline of populations in some cases. 

These included reductions in total allowable catches (TACs) and individually transferable quotas 

(ITQs) to monitor catches and populations sizes, as well as gear restrictions to reduce fishing 

mortality. Less emphasis was placed on CPUE in fisheries management, and more reliable methods 

of assessment such as fishery-independent acoustic surveys were employed to ensure the stability 

of population numbers in these fishes. Unfortunately not all fishing sectors have these safeguards. 

The recreational fishery in South Africa suffers major population declines in recent decades.

The slow growing, late maturing coastal fishes in South Africa face the quagmire of the Basin Effect 

in the minds of their captors. Many of these species are resident in their habitats, some migrate to 

spawn, some gather in large numbers to spawn and many use estuaries as nursery areas. The 

Basin Effect causes major misconceptions amongst fishermen about the abundance of common 

angling fish engaging in aggregating behaviour. This misconception impedes the success of 

education of fishermen on the plight of angling fishes now facing major population collapse off the 

South African coastline. Many shore anglers ignore fishing regulations deeming them an 

unnecessary nuisance. Many anglers believe they cannot do damage with a rod and line and often 

pass the blame to the subsistence or offshore sector – another misconception. The subsistence 

sector is a relatively small component of the fishing force in South Africa targeting coastal species 

and the large fishing fleets of the country don’t have access to the shallow-water species that are 

heavily exploited.

Populations of Baardman, Dageraad, Dusky kob, Englishmen, Galjoen, Garrikc, Geelbek, Redsteenbras, Red Stumpnose, Riverbream, Scotsman, Seventyfour, Silver Kob, Squaretail Kob, White Musselcracker, White Stumpnose and White-edge rockcod are all officially collapsed in 

South Africa. These species are shallow-water, coastal species that are available to the recreational (Rock and Surf or Estuary sectors), ski-boat and subsistence fisheries only. All these 

species grow slowly; reach sexual maturity only after a number of years; have complex biology in 

that many change sex after a number of years; and most are harvested below breeding size. For 

example, Dusky kob reaches sexual maturity at about 1m in size (5-6 years of age); yet fish are 

harvested below this size and are unfortunately regulated as such (Minimum size is 60 cm). Many 

species that undergo sex change, especially late in their lives, are now subject to skewed sex ratios 

in the wild. Poenskop or Black Musselcracker only become male after 18 years of age, now that 

most large individuals are fished out, the population is mainly female dominated and these too are 

harvested with such pressure that few live long enough to change sex and become males. Many 

species are legally harvested at size of sexual maturity (White Musselcracker) yet their population 

status suffers the same fate as the kob. Shear harvesting pressure dictates their population status. 

All these species suffer the consequences of the Basin Effect by virtue of spawning behavior, 

feeding strategies, migration, estuary nursery use or reef residency. They aggregate and their 

young are trapped in the ‘safe refuge’ of estuary nurseries, a fishing hotspot around South Africa. 

The problems are multifaceted but fishermen behaviour and fish behavior are at the core of the 

problem. 

The only solution is angler education and government legislation in support. A ban of all kob catch 

retention is long known by fish biologists as the only solution to save this species from local 

extinction off South Africa. How well received would such a ruling be? Firstly, would it be 

supported amongst the various fishing sectors in South Africa and secondly, would it be enforced 

in South Africa given the extent of enforcement issues affecting our marine resources. The only 

solution in the interim is angler education and higher penalties for the illegal trade in recreational

fish species. Recent fish poaching along the entire South African coast by members of the 

recreational sector who sell to restaurants and overseas markets has become an epidemic and 

exacerbates the problem. In the Eastern Cape, perpetrators who fish under recreational permits 

are also known abalone poachers with convictions or pending cases against them. Marine 

resource crimes coupled with the general lack of education in resource users is decimating coastal 

fishes in South Africa.

Know your species, know its vulnerabilities but use the knowledge to understand how you have 

been misled and fish responsibly. Report environmental crimes against fish. Name and shame 

wrong-doers in public forums like Facebook & fishing sites. We don’t want them amongst us. Fish 

ethically and maybe your grandchildren will also have fishing stories about the same species to 

share with you in the future. 

Can Understand?

During the late eighteenth century, when Napoleon's army suffered a terrible famine whilst waging war in their Russian campaign, the emperor offered a reward to anyone who can present a method to keep food in a good state for a longer period of time, convinced that "hosts win better fed."

This is when a French chef, Nicolas Appert, discovered entirely empirically, that he could preserve food for several years simply by heating it for a period of time in sealed containers. Appert placed vegetables and soups in glass containers sealed with cork and wax which once boiled became preserved. Thus, in 1810, Nicolas won the emperor’s reward of 12 000 francs and was awarded the prize of "Benefactor of Humanity." Nicolas Appert published the first modern preserved cook book titled: L'Art de conserver les substances animales et végétales (The Art of Preserving Animal and Vegetable Substances) In honour of Appert, the preservation of food is also referred to as "appertización" and was thus the birth of the industrial conservation and preservation of food technology invented.

                                                 

Above is Nicolas Appert's Glass Canning Jar

The news of "appertización" only arrived in Spain in 1840 with the shipwreck of a French sailing vessel off Cape Finisterre... and in less than a year the first fish cannery in Spain was built. By 1900 the frying of foods preserved by steaming is replaced, which significantly lowered the manufacturing process, popularized worldwide the "system of Spanish cooking," which marked the access of all social classes to affordable and quality foods.

At the time of the discovery by Appert, glass containers were used, but later in 1810 Englishman Peter Durand, began using tin cans instead of glass which drastically reduced the effect of light and thus preventing deterioration of the vitamin content. The tin can allowed for a greater nutritional value of preservation which was widely made use by the British Navy & Army and reached the Americas in 1822. 

Then followed numerous improvements with the packaging technology mainly the development of printed cases and stacking cans that facilitated distribution and sales. In the 1940's, during the course of World War II, given the scarcity of tin, the aluminium industry began manufacturing cans for packaging. This constitutes a technological revolution in the canning industry. The reduced weight aluminium cans ensures a greater reduction in oxidation and sulfurization which in turn is not transmitted into the preserved product as easily. Aluminium also allows great versatility of shapes and sizes with a glossy attractive and neat finish to facilitate its handling. Aluminium is an abundant metal in the earth's crust, whose manufacturing process consumes little power and is also infinitely recyclable. 

Although tin is resistant to corrosion, certain foods with a high level of acidity can cause dissolution of element tin into the preserved product. Thus the canning industry began layering the inside of cans with an epoxy coating to prevent the contents from coming into contact with the tin. Modern day cans contain Bisphenol-A (BPA) in their lining which is a harmful toxic chemical compound found in plastic. 

The story of preservation and canning is an interesting one which without would have influenced the fishing industry to a great extent.

The State Of Your Tuna Fishery

The International Sustainable Seafood Foundation (ISSF) recently published online a downloadable technical report outlining the current health of our 23 commercial global tuna stocks titled: The Status of the Stocks. The report provides a comprehensive summary of the recent scientific stock assessments as well as the current management measures implemented by the respective Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMO's). The methodology behind the rationale of this report revolves around these three key main factors: Abundance, Exploitation/Management (fishing mortality) and Environmental Impact (bycatch).  

In 2012 the global total catch of the 23 commercial tuna stocks was 4.6 million tons with skipjack tuna accounting for a total catch of 56% of this volume. Whilst the total yellow fin and albacore are 28% and 6% only. Whilst these are large volumes, it is proposed that globally 52% of the tuna stocks are in a healthy level of abundance, 39% are overfished and 9% are at an intermediate level. In terms of exploitation, 43.5% of the stocks are experiencing a low fishing mortality rate, 17.4% are experiencing overfishing, and 39.1% have a high fishing mortality that is being managed adequately.

When viewed from the point of view of total catch, 86% of the catch comes from healthy stocks. This is due to the fact that skipjack stocks contribute more than one half of the global catch of tunas, and they are all in a healthy situation due to their high fecundity rate. In contrast, most bluefin stocks and 2 out of 6 albacore stocks are overfished, but combined they make a relatively small fraction of the total catch.

A foreign vessel offloads its catch of tuna:

There are three main albacore tuna stocks in the Atlantic Ocean ICCAT area namely: North Atlantic, South Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Albacore catches in the South Atlantic increased 2% in 2012 (24,600 tons) from the previous year. Long linging accounts for 67% of this and 26% for Pole and Line. In 2012, the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) was set to 24 600 tons with a Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) at 25 200 tons. Due to the respective scientific advice and recommendations, the TAC for 2013 was reduced to 24 000 tons by the RFMO ICCAT. The Pole & Line review notes the lack of information regarding the impact the live bait vessels inflict upon the small pelagics and therefore could possibly be upgraded in the future with adequate data collection.

Currently South Africa has a quota allocation of 4 400 tons only. Previously South Africa and Namibia had a sharing scheme but last year's ICCAT meeting it was generally voted to be split thereby Namibia's quota will be set at 3 600 tons. With the recent figures circulating around the Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries (DAFF), South Africa should reach and succeed our quota before the end of this year. This has major implications and repercussions with the most noticeable being a reduction in our quota by the volume of what was over caught for the 2016 season. (the quota will remain 4 400 tons for the 2015 season)

South Africa who has the second largest albacore quota (Chinese Taipei has been allocated 9 400 tons) will have to approach the other South Atlantic fishing nations and request additional quota from them should we exceed our limit. 

Blessing Our Fleet's Heritage

With this year's Blessing Of The Fleet taking place on during the weekend of the 40th week being so close to the public holiday Heritage Day and Heritage Month, one cant help but embrace this theme for this is exactly what this festival embraces. The Blessing of the Fleet festival once again took place at the V&A Waterfront with a great attendance of both the Portuguese and other fishermen's families over the course of a hot weekend. With last season's catches having improved substantially, it is no wonder this year had an even better participation. The tuna pole fleet this past season have mostly all managed to catch decent volumes albeit nothing of the years gone by, but nonetheless a few more smiles have been seen along the quays. Who knows, maybe this year will be even better than the last? Here's hoping.

The only real major issues this off season was that of the slipways and their lack of availability. With Cape Town syncro lift having been closed for maintenance and with Hout Bay's main slip being broken, there weren't too many options available for the vessel owners. This has created an unwanted amount of tension and back log. Furthermore, there were some strike action on the Hout Bay slip, although this was denied by DAFF. This same slipway has been out of commission for a few months now. Not sure how long you need to repair a slip but then I think of all those jokes about "how many people does it take to screw in a light bulb?" Perhaps this is a clear indication that it is time for the slipway in Hout Bay should be privatized?

Secondly, SAMSA have been more vigilant this season and have been checking and enforcing the qualifications of each vessel's crew. We had to send our officers on the fire fighting, first aid courses again which is a good thing. I suspect this is due to the fact that SAMSA is currently reviewing our industry's safe manning requirements and have thus issued you with 2 certificates, namely; Safe Manning Document and now also the Advisory Safe Manning Document which outlines what you will be required to crew with the respective competence in the near future. This is all in accordance with SAMSA's initiative to align the current South African manning compliment with that of the International Maritime Organisation's recommendations. This is to ensure that we conform with the international standard especially for those vessels operating with the high seas command.

So as is this time of the year that all the vessels are receiving their preparations and diligent attention  in respect of the surveys that they will undergo to be shipshape for the up and coming pending season. The harbor is abuzz with contractors working under the ever so vigilant eye of the owners and skippers. We have seen the fleet undergo a large amount of maintenance and plank work in preparation for this years arrival of the tuna.

Staying with the heritage theme... I came across a very informative and interesting website called Trawler Heritage. The author of this site who has dedicated this effort to his late dad, has insightful information and comments regarding the fishing vessels both past and present that operate along our coast. His comments regarding each vessel which he has an extensive collection of photos published on this site, are pretty accurate. He has even noticed the color schemes changing on some of the vessels this year. If you are a vessel owner then I suggest that you take a look on his website as he probably has your vessel's history logged. He has gone into great details and effort to keep his pictures and information current and has subsequently received an international ward. Kudos to him and all who have provided assistance. The website provides a great source of information regarding our fishing heritage, harbor infrastructure and general industry news. A good read for those interested and it seems to be updated regularly.

Pictured above in Hout Bay, is three of the former S.A. Sea Products vessels now in the tuna pole sector moored alongside each other namely from left to right; "Hangberg," "Sneeuberg" & "Constantiaberg," while a fourth sister vessel the "Barbara W" which moored directly in front of them has now sunk. At present all four vessels have different owners, and were used as crayfish boats in days gone by. This picture and caption are from their website for your information. (www.trawlerheritage.co.za)

With this year's blessings having been bestowed, all that remains is for the patient arrival of the tuna. Good luck to all and may this season be better than the last.

The B-BBEE Net Tightens Around Fishing Sector:

Many folk who actually paid attention or managed to stay compos mentis took away different understandings and perceived visions regarding President Jacob Zuma’s State of the Nation Address delivered to Parliament on June 17^th. I’m referring in particular to the following extract below written for and on his behalf:

“We will sharpen the implementation of the amended Broad-based Economic Empowerment Act and the Employment Equity Act, in order to transform the ownership, management and control of the economy. We will promote more employee and community share ownership schemes and boost the participation of black entrepreneurs in the re-industrialisation of the economy.”

The various government departments have already begun to include B-BBEE compliance as a requirement for licensing procedures and incentive schemes alike. This is nothing new to the fishing right holders and vessel owners who have been forced to comply for some years already. The clause that has me perturbed in particular is in the interpretation of Notice 27 and Notice 28 of 2014 published in the Government Gazette of 21 January 2014, pertaining to the import and export of specified agricultural foodstuffs and flowers, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has included a valid B-BBEE certificate as one of the application requirements for being issued with a new export and import permit… My fish export company has recently renewed 2 of our export permits and this was not a requirement, yet. It will also need to be established if this will be the department’s intention to implement this and also whether they will be requiring the minimum B-BBEE compliance or if they will (as they have done in the past) enforce a higher level of compliance? This ultimately means that the export and marketing companies will now have to become B-BBEE compliant or lose their export/import permits. It’s almost becoming easier and more viable for me to buy tuna in Namibia and export it from my Cape Town office!

To make matters worse is the fact that as per the Liquor Amendment Regulations 2013 published in the Government Gazette of December 3^rd, 2013 the Department of Trade and Industry is now requiring liquor license applicants to submit a valid B-BBEE compliance certificate in order to renew their permits. I’m not sure how many restaurants and bars will be forth willing to comply? It looks like I might have to move my office to Lüderitz. Prost! 

Fishing Sector To Join National " Strike Season"

With a recent letter addressed to the newly appointed fisheries minister from the COSATU (Congress Of South African Trade Unions)   Provincial Secretary, Tony Ehrenreich, one cant help but wonder whats on the agenda. It was apparently clear with Marius Fransman's engagement and drive for ANC votes from the small local fishing communities that they would continue to press further ahead after showing some improvement with votes accrued.

With the drive by the unions to become more involved in the fishing sector as mentioned by Tony, this past week saw the first of what we expect to be many more altercations and loud discussions with crew employed on one of our hake long liners. The entire crew have joined a small union and have upon affiliation become increasingly more difficult. Needless to say the entire crew received written letters of warning (the first of its kind ever issued from our company) to all the crew for all and any transgressions noted.

With our Government/ Department of Labor looking to to implement the national standardization of wages in the fishing sector a year or so back, I wonder why it has taken the Unions so long to wake up. Standardization of commission wages would only provide a monthly security of a wage however they would ultimately end up earning less and paying more taxes or see the fishing vessels becoming increasingly tied up (fed up) and not being able to operate due to increased operational costs. The Department of Labor needs to realize that their fellow Governmental Departments are far ahead at increasing operational costs with the electricity hike that run the ice makers, the increased diesel price that powers the engines and of course the fees and levies billed by the Fisheries Department. The vessel owners are being squashed and forced to save every cent with operational costs continuing to increase.

I'm not quite sure what the unions will do apart from the annual strike (annual leave) that their members will be forced to participate in or be press ganged into joining or face some sort of wrath of the participants, most likely for higher wages, free dental and housing allowance (its not an allowance if you are demanding it free). The truth is the level of education of the fishers is some what lacking and to be honest most fish out of necessity and not by choice. With this in mind, the crews aboard our vessel will look for every opportunity to permanently borrow anything of some remote value. For an illustrated example, last month I caught one particular crew member (lets call him Jack) stealing 2x10kg boxes of pike bait, literally red handed with the cash in hand during the exchange of goods. Needless to say Jack was dismissed on the very spot. Two weeks later we received a summons to appear in the CCMA. That very crew member Jack had taken us to court over an unfair dismissal and sought compensation of R50k. The judge laughed the matter off and in the end only time was wasted. However, we were advised to issue written warnings to all crew members for contraventions and keep the on file for that rainy day at the CCMA.

I wish the unions the very best of luck as this is the mentality of who will represented.