High levels of seafood fraud revealed in Danish fishmongers

The marine conservation organization Oceana, the Danish newspaper Søndagsavisen and the TV program “Go’Aften Denmark” conducted a study revealing that 18% of cod sold in fishmongers is not actually cod, but haddock or saithe. In total, 120 samples were collected from fishmongers, supermarkets and restaurants in the wider Copenhagen region in order to undergo DNA … Read more

Oceana exposes illegal driftnet fisheries, while Italy denies it

Oceana observers, together with a cameraman from Reportime (Corriere della Sera), have gathered evidence of fishing boats using illegal driftnets in southern Italy’s port of Bagnara Calabra, as published today on Corriere della Sera by Report journalist Sabrina Giannini. This destructive fishing gear has been banned in the EU since 2002, due to high by-catch … Read more

Oceana reveals illegal driftnet fishing in Morocco

Morocco officially phased out driftnets in 2010 with funding from the EU and US  Oceana today revealed that the illegal use of driftnets to capture swordfish has returned to Tangiers, Morocco. Evidence gathered by the international marine conservation organization over the past three days, shows small-scale vessels acting in coordination with larger ones with absolute … Read more

Oceana welcomes continued EU commitment to fight IUU fishing worldwide

Today, the European Commission added the Philippines and Papua New Guinea to the list of countries failing to tackle Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing (IUU). Both countries must now demonstrate that they have taken adequate measures to address IUU fishing and if identified shortcomings are not addressed, they could face a ban of fish and … Read more

Oceana says EU should act against true ‘walls of death’

Driftnet fishing for large pelagic species is banned due to high by-catch rates of endangered species. Today, the European Commission announced its proposal to ban all types of driftnets from operating in European waters. The measure is aimed at eliminating alleged loopholes that allow illegal fishing with driftnets to continue. However, according to Oceana, the … Read more

EU Council announces first-ever seafood trade ban against illegal fishing nations

Today, four leading environmental groups – Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), Oceana, The Pew Charitable Trusts and WWF have welcomed a decision by the EU Fisheries Council to place trade restrictions on Belize, Cambodia, and Guinea for failing to cooperate in fighting Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing. The decision means EU member states are now … Read more

Seafood Fraud: France, star student of Europe

Following the recent crises that rocked the meat industry in Europe, BLOOM, Oceana, researchers from INSERM and the National Museum of Natural History, and Terra eco magazine teamed up to take on seafood traceability in France by conducting a unique investigation into fish labelling fraud. Over the course of one year, 10 regions were studied … Read more

Oceana presents evidence and recommendations in Brussels for the fight against illegal fishing within the european fleet

In 2007, Oceana identified more than 100 vessels using illegal driftnets. Oceana presented two reports in Brussels today: “Italian driftnets: the illegal fishing activities continue” and “Thonaille: the use of driftnets by the French fleet in the Mediterranean”. Both reports condemn the continued use of this illegal fishing gear by the French and Italian fleets … Read more

French driftnetters will not fish in 2008

Driftnets, a fishing gear that can reach dozens of kilometres in length, were prohibited in the European Union in 2002 because they constitute a threat to the conservation of cetaceans, sea turtles and sharks. Oceana has reported that Italy and France continue using this illegal fishing gear to capture bluefin tuna and swordfish, years after … Read more