Australia Northern prawn
Last Updated: 1 September 2011
Number of fisheries: 1
Species
Brown tiger prawn (Penaeus esculentus)
Grooved tiger prawn (P. semisulcatus)
Blue endeavor prawn (Metapenaeus endeavouri)
Red endeavor prawn (M. ensis)
White Banana prawns (Fenneropenaeus merguiensis);
Red legged banana prawns (Fenneropenaeus indicus)
MSC assessment status
The certification body, MRAG Americas, has proposed two peer reviewers for the review of the Draft Assessment Report.
If you wish to provide feedback on the proposed peer reviewers, please contact Richard Banks no later than 5pm GMT, 30th September 2011.
Please refer to the assessment downloads section for more information.
Fishery location
Australian Commonwealth Waters in FAO area 71
Fishing method
Twin, triple and quad otter trawl
Fishery management
The fishery is managed through a combination of input controls (limited entry, seasonal closures, gear restrictions and operational controls), implemented under the Northern Prawn Fishery Management Plan1995.
Commercial market
Domestic: fresh & frozen. International: frozen primarily to Japan & China.
Assessment timeline
The assessment process is expected to take 10 months and is scheduled for completion around April 2012. Please see the download section for a detailed assessment timeline.
The target eligibility date for this fishery is the 5th July 2011.
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).
Tonnage of the fishery
In 2010 tiger prawn catches were 1,628mt, endeavor prawn 429mt and banana prawn 5,642mt
