Photo: NHK

Fisheries Agency Proposes 60% Reduction in Pacific Mackerel Quota for Next Season

JAPAN
Tuesday, March 25, 2025, 05:30 (GMT + 9)

Pacific mackerel catch quota set at 139,000 tons.

In response to declining mackerel catches, a policy has been finalized to reduce the current catch quota on the Pacific coast for the next season, beginning in July, by 60%. This aims to prevent overfishing and stabilize catches, as reported by NHK News.

The catch of "saba," encompassing chub mackerel and pied mackerel, around Japan has seen a continuous decline. Preliminary figures for last year's catch indicate just over 260,000 tons, less than half of the catch five years prior.

On the 19th, the Fisheries Agency convened a meeting with fishermen and stakeholders to discuss the "fishing quota," the upper limit for mackerel catches in the Pacific coastal area for the next season starting in July.

This season's mackerel catch quota in the Pacific coastal area is set at just over 350,000 tons. However, at the meeting, a proposal was presented to reduce this quota by 60% to 80% for the next season.

Participants voiced concerns, requesting a guaranteed catch amount. Ultimately, a policy was decided to reduce the next season's catch quota by 60%, setting it at 139,000 tons.

Meanwhile, a proposal has been presented to maintain the mackerel catch quota for the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea largely unchanged at just over 220,000 tons for the next season.

The Fisheries Agency plans to hold a meeting with fishermen and experts in May to finalize this policy.

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