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North West Atlantic Canada longline swordfish

Last Updated: 7 February 2012
Number of fisheries: 1

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Species

North Atlantic swordfish (Xiphias gladius)

MSC assessment status

The North West Atlantic Canada longline swordfish fishery is currently undergoing an independent objections process.
The Independent Adjudicator has provided a response to the objection raised and this has been posted on the assessment downloads page for this fishery on the MSC website, as per paragraph 4.6.2 of the MSC Objections Procedure (TAB D-023 v2).

For more information on the independent objections process for this fishery, please see the assessment downloads page for this fishery on the MSC website. For more information on the MSC independent objections process, please see the MSC objections factsheet and flowchart .

Fishery location

Longline and harpoon gear for swordfish is permitted in open areas within NAFO areas 3, 4, 5, & 6 as well as outside the NAFO Convention Area, in the ICCAT Northern Swordfish Boundary Area North of 35 degrees North and West of 30 degrees West.

Fishing method

Pelagic longline and harpoon.

Fishery management

The Canadian quota of swordfish is divided among fleet sectors by DFO, with the longline sector receiving 90% of the quota, and the remaining 10% allocated to the harpoon sector.  Quota allocation within each harvest sector is the key difference between management approach of the longline and harpoon fleet.  Longline quota is allocated within the fleet based on an individual transferrable quota sharing formula, whereas the harpoon quota is harvested competitively.  

Unfished quota remaining at the end of a season is carried over, and applied to the next years ICCAT recommendation.  Similarly, should quota over runs occur, the amount is deducted from the next seasons quota. Allocations to the harpoon and longline fleet are then based on the adjusted Canadian quota.

Commercial market

Over 90% of the swordfish landed in Atlantic Canada is exported to the United States.  All products are shipped to fresh markets in a headed and gutted form.

Assessment timeline

The assessment process is scheduled for completion in or around September 2011. Please see the download section for a detailed assessment timeline.

The date of eligibility will be the date the fishery is certified. The rationale for this is that most of the product is sold on an individual fish by fish basis into the fresh market.

The MSC ecolabel can only be applied to product from certified fisheries. The MSC program does allow, in certain circumstances and within strict traceability requirements, the MSC ecolabel to be applied following certification to product caught before the actual date of certification.  The target eligibility date therefore represents the date from which products may become eligible to carry the MSC ecolabel, however they cannot be sold until and if the fishery is certified. The actual eligibility date will be determined if the fishery is certified to the MSC standard.

To find out more about when fish from this fishery may be sold with the MSC ecolabel, please follow this link (http://www.msc.org/get-certified/supply-chain/eligibility-dates).

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