The Peruvian Ministry of Production (Produce) announced the modification of the catch quota for giant squid and squid (hydrobiological resource) for 2019. It established the new quota at 560K tons, higher than the 504K tons established last October. At the beginning of November, the catch already exceeded 460K tons and it was expected that the catch quote of 504K tons would be reached before the end of November. As such, the ministry raised the quota.
Peru is a major export of squid, the 5th largest in the world, exporting 303.4 million USD worth of the cephalopod in 2018. Squid is Peru's 2nd most important fishery, after anchovy and in 2018, squid landings increased by 10.3% to 311.3 K tons. The catch quota in 2019 was already increased once, from 450K tons in early 2019 to 504K tons, but the squid landings were a lot higher than expected.
Nevertheless, at the end of December, some suppliers were indicating a lack of giant squid along the Peruvian coastline. The season is about to start in the northern region of Peru.
Sources
- Peru21. Translated from Spanish. "Produce raised the 2019 fishing quota for pota to 560 thousand tons."
- La Republica. Translated from Spanish. "Produce raised the 2019 fishing quota for pota to 560 thousand tons."
- Pesco y Medio Ambiente. Translated from Spanish. "Produce raised the quota for pota fishing to 560,000 MT."
