Taiwan tuna-fishing association launches fishery improvement project to gain MSC certification

A recently launched partnership in Taiwan has set up a fishery improvement project (FIP) for the nation's tuna fishery, aiming to achieve certification to the Marine Stewardship Council standard.Ocean Outcomes (O2), a U.S.-based nonprofit, partnered with the Taiwan Tuna Longline Association (TTLA), the largest fishing vessel member association in Taiwan, in April 2024 to improve fishing practices among Taiwanese longline tuna vessels. Now, that partnership has launched its first FIP, applying to 41 TTLA vessels with a combined catch of 3,500 metric tons (MT) of Pacific albacore, bigeye, and yellowfin tuna. The new FIP is the second in Taiwan that O2 has announced this year. The organization established a FIP with Fue Shin Fishery that aimed to improve environmental and labor standards on 10 longline tuna vessels in the Indian Ocean. That FIP applied to albacore, skipjack, bigeye, and yellowfin tuna, with a similar goal of achieving MSC certification. The new FIP with TTLA, O2 ...