South African Deep Sea Trawling Industry Association

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The South African Deep-Sea Trawling Industry Association (SADSTIA) represents the trawler owners and operators active in the offshore demersal trawl fishery for hake, the most valuable of South Africa's commercial fisheries, contributing approximately 45 percent of the value of fishery production. [1] Based in Cape Town, South Africa, SADSTIA currently has 32 members that catch, process and market the Cape hakes, Merluccius paradoxus and Merluccius capensis as well as several bycatch species.

Contents

The offshore demersal trawl fishery for hake

In South Africa, hake is targeted by four distinct fisheries: the offshore and inshore demersal trawl fisheries, and the hake longline and hake handline sectors. [2] The offshore demersal trawl fishery is by far the biggest of the four. Approximately 84% of the hake total allowable catch (TAC) is allocated to the offshore demersal trawl fishery. The inshore trawl and hake longline fisheries are each allocated approximately 6% of the TAC and the handline fishery presently accounts for about 3% of the allocation, although this has not been caught in recent years. [3] Trawling for hake takes place in a near continuous band on well-established grounds that extend from the Namibian border on the west coast to the extreme eastern part of the Agulhas Bank off the south-east coast. [4] Exploitation is predominantly at depths of between 300 and 800m on the west coast and less than 200m on the south coast. [4] The offshore demersal trawl fleet consists of 53 trawlers. Twenty six fresh fish trawlers preserve hake on ice and return it to shore for processing, while 27 freezer vessels produce frozen headed and gutted (H&G) hake or sea-frozen fillets. [5] The gear configuration consists of “otter trawls” – gear towed along the seabed with trawl doors (or otter boards) keeping the mouth of the net open. Trawlers generally tow their nets at 3.5 knots for one to three hours, mainly in daylight when targeting hake. [6] Trawling occurs mainly over sandy sediments, but areas of muddy substrate and coarser, gravely substrates are also trawled. [4] A five-year benthic trawl experiment was implemented between 2014 and 2019 with the purpose of determining the environmental impact of demersal trawling in South African waters. It was implemented by SADSTIA in partnership with the South African Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, the University of Cape Town, the South African Environmental Observation Network and the South African National Biodiversity Institute. The catch of the offshore demersal trawl sector amounts to approximately 130 000 tonnes per year (2013 catches) [7] although this has varied between 118 000 and 166 000 tonnes, and consists of approximately 90% M. paradoxus and 10% M. capensis. The main bycatch species are kingklip ( Genypterus capensis ) and monk ( Lophius vomerinus ). [8] Trawler owners and operators produce a mix of fresh and frozen products, supplying them to retail and food-service markets both locally and internationally. The main export markets are in Europe, Australia and the United States. [9]

A representative industry body

SADSTIA represents 99.6% of the rights holders in the offshore demersal trawl fishery for hake. The Association interacts with government, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other interested parties for the benefit of its members. SADSTIA maintains a professional relationship with a number of scientific and management organisations, which enables it to comment and provide advice on a wide range of issues pertinent to the offshore demersal trawl fishery in particular, or the South African fishing industry as a whole. An executive committee [10] is responsible for the management of SADSTIA and a chairman and/or deputy chairman and executive secretary take care of the day-to-day running of the Association.

Since its founding in 1974, [11] SADSTIA has played a central role in the growth and development of the offshore demersal trawl fishery. For example, the Association was instrumental in harnessing industry and government support for the assessment and accreditation of the South African trawl fishery for hake by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). The MSC is an independent non-profit organisation that sets a standard for sustainable fishing. The South African trawl fishery for hake achieved MSC certification in 2004 and was re-certified as sustainable and well-managed in 2010, 2015 and 2021. The expansion by SADSTIA members into markets in northern Europe (Germany and Switzerland for example) has largely been on the strength of the fishery's MSC certification. [12]

Transformation of the industry

SADSTIA is governed by a constitution that was adopted on 24 March 1974 and updated on 12 September 2002. [13] This was in recognition of the fact that circumstances in South Africa and in the fishing industry changed considerably after 1994, the year of South Africa's transition to democracy. In fact, the structure of the offshore demersal trawl fishery has changed substantially since 1994, in keeping with South African laws and guidelines on black economic empowerment. A study published by the independent empowerment research and rating agency, Empowerdex, in April 2019 found that black shareholding is at least 66.6%. [14] A study by independent economists, Genesis Analytics, updated this figure to 66.8% in 2020. [1] This is in stark contrast to the period pre-1990 when only a handful of companies held rights in the fishery – all of them large and white-owned. [15] Today, there are 33 rights holders in the fishery. These may be broadly separated into three categories: smaller companies that supply the domestic market with minimally processed hake; medium-sized companies that operate as wholesalers, serving both domestic and international markets; and large companies with sophisticated, vertically integrated operations that process hake for local and international retail markets. [16]

Investment and opportunities

The offshore demersal trawl fishery generates annual sales of hake of R4.3 billion (US$307 million). [1] Approximately 6 600 South Africans are directly employed by SADSTIA members, while another 5 800 indirect jobs are created in associated industries. Jobs are in coastal areas, including Cape Town, Saldanha, Gansbaai, Mossel Bay and Gqebehra. [1] Investments in trawlers and processing facilities by SADSTIA members are believed to amount to R7.6 billion (US$540 million). [5] Workers employed in the South African offshore and inshore demersal trawl fisheries are well compensated compared to others in the fishing industry. This is because fishing is not seasonal and employment is generally on a permanent basis. [17] And, although most fisheries workers in South Africa do not enjoy the provisions of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act of 1997, a unique labour relations framework has been established for seagoing workers in the offshore demersal and inshore trawl fisheries. A Bargaining Council was established in 2001 and a Collective Agreement, that sets out basic conditions of employment – such as set daily wages for each category of worker, set hours of work and regulated rest and leave periods – has been in effect since 2 May 2003. [17]

Management of the fishery

The offshore demersal trawl fishery for hake has been tightly managed and closely monitored since November 1977 when South Africa declared its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) under the United Nations Law of the Sea. [18] Having gained sovereignty over its fisheries resources, South Africa immediately began implementing regulatory and conservation measures, working with the trawling industry to rehabilitate the hake stocks that had been devastated by international fishing fleets. [12] Today, the setting of an annual total allowable catch (TAC) remains the primary management measure for regulating the hake fisheries. However, a comprehensive suite of additional measures has been developed and implemented over time to address mainly socio-economic and ecosystem concerns. These measures are as follows:

Enforcement of regulations and permit conditions include monitoring of all landings, imposition of fines in the case of minor offences, or full legal action under Section 28 of the South African Marine Living Resources Act that could result in the loss of rights in the event of successful prosecution. [12]

Threats to sustainability

The awarding of three prospecting licenses for the mining of marine phosphates from the seabed off the coast of South Africa is of serious concern to SADSTIA and its members. The prospecting license areas and proposed drill sites coincide with much of the footprint of the offshore demersal trawl fishery. [19] As a result of the threat posed by bulk marine sediment mining, SADSTIA has joined the Safeguard our Seabed Coalition which is lobbying the South African government for a moratorium on marine phosphate mining in South Africa.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trawling</span> Method of catching fish

Trawling is an industrial method of fishing that involves pulling a fishing net through the water behind one or more boats. The net used for trawling is called a trawl. This principle requires netting bags which are towed through water to catch different species of fishes or sometimes targeted species. Trawls are often called towed gear or dragged gear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bycatch</span> Fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally

Bycatch, in the fishing industry, is a fish or other marine species that is caught unintentionally while fishing for specific species or sizes of wildlife. Bycatch is either the wrong species, the wrong sex, or is undersized or juveniles of the target species. The term "bycatch" is also sometimes used for untargeted catch in other forms of animal harvesting or collecting. Non-marine species that are caught but regarded as generally "undesirable" are referred to as rough fish or coarse fish.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bottom trawling</span> Fishing method by towing a net along the seafloor

Bottom trawling is trawling along the seafloor. It is also referred to as "dragging". The scientific community divides bottom trawling into benthic trawling and demersal trawling. Benthic trawling is towing a net at the very bottom of the ocean and demersal trawling is towing a net just above the benthic zone. Bottom trawling can be contrasted with midwater trawling, where a net is towed higher in the water column. Midwater trawling catches pelagic fish such as anchovies and mackerel, whereas bottom trawling targets both bottom-living fish (groundfish) and semi-pelagic species such as cod, squid, shrimp, and rockfish.

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Merluccius merluccius or the European hake is a merluccid hake of the genus Merluccius. Other vernacular names include Cornish salmon and herring hake. It is a predatory species, which was often netted alongside one of its favoured prey, the Atlantic herring, hence the latter common name. It is found in the eastern Atlantic from Norway and Iceland south to Mauritania and into the Mediterranean Sea. It is an important species in European fisheries and is heavily exploited, with some populations being fished unsustainably.

<i>Merluccius capensis</i> Species of fish

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Felet, A., Fiandeiro, F., Ntanzi, A., van der Hoven, Z., Moses, P-J. & Goagoses, L. 2020. Economic study of the Hake Deep-Sea Trawl fishery and the implications for future fishing rights allocation policy. Johannesburg, South Africa, Genesis Analytics. 135 pp. Available at https://www.sadstia.co.za/publication/economic-study-of-the-hake-deep-sea-trawl-fishery-and-the-implications-for-future-fishing-rights-allocation-policy/
  2. ↑ Durholtz, M.D., Singh, L., Fairweather, T.P., Leslie, R., van der Lingen, C.D., Bross, C.A.R., Hutchings, L., Rademeyer, R.A., Butterworth, D.S & Payne, A.I.L. 2015. Fisheries, ecology and markets of South African hake. In H. Arancibia, ed. 2015. Hakes. Biology and exploitation. Chichester, UK, John Wiley & Sons Ltd., p. 38−69.
  3. ↑ "The hake fisheries".
  4. 1 2 3 Wilkinson, S. & Japp, D. 2005. Description and evaluation of hake-directed trawling intensity on benthic habitat in South Africa. Cape Town, Fisheries & Oceanographic Support Services, 69 pp.
  5. 1 2 "Facts and figures".
  6. ↑ FAO. 2010. Fishery and aquaculture country profiles. Republic of South Africa. Rome, FAO. Available at http://www.fao.org/fishery/facp/ZAF/en
  7. ↑ Cooper, R., Leiman, A. & Jarre, A. 2014. An analysis of the structural changes in the offshore demersal hake (Merluccius capensis and M. paradoxus) trawl fishery in South Africa. Marine Policy, 30 (1): 3−17.
  8. ↑ Durholtz, M.D., Singh, L., Fairweather, T.P., Leslie, R., van der Lingen, C.D., Bross, C.A.R., Hutchings, L., Rademeyer, R.A., Butterworth, D.S & Payne, A.I.L. 2015. Fisheries, ecology and markets of South African hake. In H. Arancibia, ed. 2015. Hakes. Biology and exploitation. Chichester, UK, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, p. 38−69.
  9. ↑ "Markets".
  10. ↑ "Committee".
  11. ↑ "History".
  12. 1 2 3 Durholtz, M.D., Singh, L., Fairweather, T.P., Leslie, R., van der Lingen, C.D., Bross, C.A.R., Hutchings, L., Rademeyer, R.A., Butterworth, D.S & Payne, A.I.L. 2015. Fisheries, ecology and markets of South African hake. In H. Arancibia, ed. 2015. Hakes. Biology and exploitation. Chichester, UK, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, p. 56.
  13. ↑ "Constitution".
  14. ↑ Allie, R. (2019). "A transformation study of the deep sea trawling industry". Empowerdex.
  15. ↑ Black Business Quarterly. 2017. Deep waters. Cape Media, BBQ, p.82−87.
  16. ↑ Ferrandi, D.C. 2015. Industrial organisation in the South African deep sea hake trawl sector: a taxonomy. Paper submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree Economics Honours. School of Economics, University of Cape Town. 21 pp.
  17. 1 2 Lallemand, P., Berg, M., Hansen, M., Venter, K. & Purves, M. 2014. An analysis of the economic benefits of MSC certificiation for the South African hake trawl fishery. Proceedings of the 17th IIFET Conference, 7–11 July 2014, Brisbane, Australia. International Institute of Fisheries Economics and Trade.
  18. ↑ "History".
  19. ↑ Brick, K. & Hasson, R. Socio-economic contribution of fisheries and other marine uses in South Africa. A socio-economic assessment in the context of marine phosphate mining. Environmental Economics Policy Research Unit, University of Cape Town
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