The Basque tuna company Txopituna joins OPAGAC and begins the process to obtain the certification of responsible fishing

SPAIN
Saturday, December 05, 2020, 20:00 (GMT + 9)

With this incorporation, the organization already represents nine companies and a fleet of 51 vessels that catch 400,000 tons per year, 8% of the world's catch

Madrid - The Basque tuna company Txopituna has started the process to obtain the Responsible Fishing Tuna certificate (APR) for the 20,000 tons of tropical tuna it catches per year, a decision adopted after its recent incorporation into the Organization of Associated Producers of Large Freezer Tuna Companies (OPAGAC), promoter of this standard.

With this incorporation, Opagac now represents nine shipowners and a fleet of 51 tuna purse seine vessels that catch 400,000 tonnes per year, approximately 8% of the world's catch, in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans, and employ more than 2,500 crew members.

Once the APR certificate has been obtained, Txopituna, based in Lekeitio (Vizcaya) and owner of four vessels that operate in the Eastern Pacific, will guarantee distributors and consumers that the tuna they sell or consume is caught in accordance with the best environmental standards. and socio-labor, even above current legal requirements. Specifically, the certificate ensures the control of fishing activity, good practices on board vessels for responsible fishing, maritime and sanitary control and compliance with social and safety conditions at work in accordance with Convention 188 of the Organization Labor International (ILO).

It should be remembered that the Opagac fleet obtained the APR certificate for all its catches in December 2018, thus fulfilling the commitment made public at the “Our Ocean” conference organized by the European Union in Malta in October of that same year.

According to Julio Morón, managing director of Opagac, “it is a satisfaction to continue adding shipbuilding companies to the movement that we have created to convert Spanish tuna vessels into champions of environmental sustainability and social responsibility. Our vocation for the future with this certification -adds Morón- is to maintain the social license to continue fishing a natural resource that belongs to the whole of society, but from which we obtain healthy food and generate employment and well-being not only for our crew members but also for the entire value chain from the sea to the supermarket shelf ”.

For his part, for Josu Txopitea, general manager of Txopituna, “our company has always maintained a commitment to its sailors and to the environment. We share these values ​​with the rest of Opagac's shipowners and, therefore, that our company becomes part of this association is something that certifies this commitment to the values ​​of responsible fishing. In fact, our fleet has already started the APR certification process with AENOR and we hope to be able to finish it in a short time, despite the difficulties posed by the pandemic ”.

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