Fish from unregulated Chinese fishing vessels may end up on tables in Japan

Fish and seafood caught by Chinese vessels, which often use illegal fishing methods and violate the human rights of workers, may end up in stores in Japan, Japanese news agency Kyodo warned on Wednesday. Kyodo brings the Chinese vessel issue into the global problem of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU fishing), which damages the marine environment and constitutes unfair competition for companies that comply with the regulations. However, it is difficult to combat due to insufficient surveillance in the seas. The US and EU countries have taken steps in recent years to control seafood imports caught by vessels related to IUU fishing and human rights violations, but Japan has lagged behind, writes the Japanese agency. The British nature conservation organization Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) interviewed nearly 70 Indonesian fishermen in 2017-2020, who worked on 19 Chinese tuna vessels in the western Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Fishermen complained ...