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SPFPO North East Atlantic mackerel

MSC status

Certified as sustainable in September 2011. 

The Conformity Assessment Body, DNV, have accepted the final corrective action plan put forward by the Mackerel Industry Northern Sustainability Alliance (MINSA) for the SPPO North East Atlantic mackerel fishery.

Suspension of the fishery certificate will not be lifted until all stated goals of the corrective action plan have been fully met and the harmonised condition of certification is met in full.

Please refer to the assessment downloads section for further information.

Summary

Species:  Mackerel (Scombur scombrus)
Location:  North-East Atlantic. FAO statistical area 27 in ICES areas II, III & IV.
Fishing methods:  Purse seine and pelagic trawl.
Vessels: 23 pair trawlers and 3 purse- seiners
Number of fisheries: 1

More about mackerel

Mackerel is a pelagic fish spending most of its time in mid-water travelling in large dense, shoals, often at great speed and making very long migrations. It is a voracious, opportunistic feeder and feeds mainly on zooplankton, but also on some small pelagic fish. As a result it is a very oily fish, building up high energy reserves during the spring and summer which it needs both for migration and subsequent gonad development during the following winter.

More about the fishing methods

As the pelagic trawlers fish as pair trawlers, there are no trawl doors used with this gear in this fishery. The trawls have an opening spread of c. 150 m and an opening height of c. 50 m. As pair trawls, there is no need to use trawl doors; the only heavy gear are the 1000 kg weights attached by 30 m wire ‘legs’ to the lower wing end to help sink and stabilise the net. All trawls are rigged for full pelagic use, i.e. they do not skim the seabed as semi-pelagic trawls can, and all efforts are made to avoid bottom contact to eliminate risk of damage to the fishing gear.

Fishery tonnage

Total catch in 2008 was 3,524 tonnes and 4,438 tonnes in 2009.

Commercial market

Norway, Denmark and UK.

Actual eligibility date

15th August 2011.

 

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