BLUEFIN history

Since our founding in 2007, our entire Bluefin leadership team has been hyper-focused on this core understanding.

In fact, an independent review commissioned by ICCAT in 2008 called ICCAT's eastern bluefin policies a “travesty of fisheries management” and “an international disgrace.” But even this did not motivate governments to act in the interest of a long-term, profitable, and sustainable fishery.

In 2009, many governments and environmental organizations called for a suspension of international trade in bluefin.

new ICCAT stock assessment in 2010 showed that situation is improving but Eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna stock remains overfished

IUCN lowered the extinction status of Atlantic bluefin tuna (under the sub-population 'Europe') to 'near threatened' from the 2011 classification of 'endangered'

At the 2012 ICCAT annual meeting the next month, member governments maintained the quotas for both areas in line with the scientific advice.

At the 2013 annual meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, ICCAT governments must heed scientific advice, exercise caution, and ensure a future for Atlantic bluefin tuna by:

In 2014, managers chose to increase the quota in response to early signs of growth.

In another positive development, ICCAT in 2016 took steps to implement an electronic catch tracking system intended to help stop illegally caught Atlantic bluefin from making it to market.

The most recent stock assessment completed in the summer of 2017 indicates that these efforts have been good for the eastern Atlantic bluefin population and for the fishing industry.