Hoki fisheries and spawning grounds. (Photo: teara.govt.nz/FIS)

Deepwater fishing firms agree on 22pct hoki catch reduction

New Zealand's firms holding hoki fishing quotas have agreed on the reduction of their cath volumes for 2019 in response to changing patterns they are observing in one of the five fishing grounds of the species.

The decision, announced by Deepwater Group, includes shelving 20,000 tonnes of West Coast quota, which represents a 22 per cent catch reduction for the West Coast hoki fishery.

At the same time, industry leaders have agreed there will be no carryover of any uncaught West Coast quota from the 2017/18 fishing year.

Deepwater Group Chair Tom Birdsall said the changes on the West Coast of the South Island are being closely monitored.

“Hoki are there in good numbers in areas inside the 25 mile line, closer to the coast, and we have also had a good season in the Cook Strait, on the Chatham Rise and in the Sub-Antarctic. But outside the 25 mile line, on the West Coast of New Zealand, fewer hoki have turned up than expected. We decided to act now, to make sure we are doing the best thing possible for the fishery,” Birdsall pointed out.

For his part, Doug Paulin, GM of Sealord stressed they prefer to be conservative in their approach so that they can have a positive influence on the hoki fishery and give it the strongest future.

Photo: teohu.conference.maori.nz

“We believed it was prudent to take this action in light of changing patterns of distribution of hoki. We are aware that there has been an unusual pattern of warmer water temperatures in the Tasman Sea in the last 18 months. We can’t say for sure that this is causing hoki to change their behaviour, but until the science can give us firm answers, we felt that this co-operative approach to limit our fishing activity was the right thing to do,” explained Volker Kuntzsch, CEO of Sanford.

(Photo: Independent Fisheries)

Mark Allison, Managing Director of Independent Fisheries helped bring the various industry leaders together and stated this decision is about putting sustainability first.

“Co-operation is the key to a sustainable fishery and that includes working closely with MPI to support the Government’s management of the hoki fishery,” Allison stressed.

Andrew Talley. (Photo: Talley Group)

Meanwhile, Andrew Talley, of Talley’s Group commented that adopting this precautionary approach with industry leaders demonstrates their ability to move quickly when they believe the need is there.

“We have supported the Promise Campaign by the wider New Zealand seafood industry. This is a demonstration of that commitment in real time,” Talley concluded.
 
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