•COVID-19 and associated mitigation measures have disrupted small-scale fishery (SSF) supply chains.•Case studies of SSF supply chains’ responses to the pandemic examined to consider their adaptive ...capacity and resilience.•Shift from global to local distribution channels observed across all case studies.•Pre-existing networks and digital technology facilitated this shift.•Over-reliance on global supply chains leads to inherent vulnerabilities.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and associated mitigation measures have disrupted global systems that support the health, food and nutrition security, and livelihoods of billions of people. These disruptions have likewise affected the small-scale fishery (SSF) sector, disrupting SSF supply chains and exposing weaknesses in the global seafood distribution system. To inform future development of adaptive capacity and resilience in the sector, it is important to understand how supply chain actors are responding in the face of a macroeconomic shock. Comparing across seven SSF case studies in four countries, we explore how actors are responding to COVID-19 disruptions, identify constraints to adaptive responses, and describe patterns of disruption and response across cases. In all cases examined, actors shifted focus to local and regional distribution channels and particularly drew on flexibility, organization, and learning to re-purpose pre-existing networks and use technology to their advantage. Key constraints to reaching domestic consumers included domestic restrictions on movement and labor, reduced spending power amongst domestic consumers, and lack of existing distribution channels. In addition, the lack of recognition of SSFs as essential food-producers and inequities in access to technology hampered efforts to continue local seafood supply. We suggest that the initial impacts from COVID-19 highlight the risks in of over-reliance on global trade networks. The SSFs that were able to change strategies most successfully had local organizations and connections in place that they leveraged in innovative ways. As such, supporting local and domestic networks and flexible organizations within the supply chain may help build resilience in the face of future macroeconomic shocks. Importantly, bolstering financial wellbeing and security within the domestic market both before and during such large-scale disruptions is crucial for supporting ongoing supply chain operations and continued food provision during macroeconomic crises.
The COVID-19 pandemic and response has significantly disrupted fishery supply chains, creating shortages of essential foods and constraining livelihoods globally. Small-scale fisheries (SSFs) are ...responding to the pandemic in a variety of ways. Together, disruptions from and responses to COVID-19 illuminate existing vulnerabilities in the fish distribution paradigm and possible means of reducing system and actor sensitivity and exposure and increasing adaptive capacity. Integrating concepts from literature on supply chain disruptions, social-ecological systems, human wellbeing, vulnerability, and SSFs, we synthesize preliminary lessons from six case studies from Indonesia, the Philippines, Peru, Canada, and the United States. The SSF supply chains examined employ different distribution strategies and operate in different geographic, political, social, economic, and cultural contexts. Specifically, we ask (a) how resilient have different SSF supply chains been to COVID-19 impacts; (b) what do these initial outcomes indicate about the role of distribution strategies in determining the vulnerability of SSF supply chains to macroeconomic shocks; and (c) what key factors have shaped this vulnerability? Based on our findings, systemic changes that may reduce SSF vulnerability to future macroeconomic shocks include: diversification of distribution strategies, livelihoods, and products; development of local and domestic markets and distribution channels; reduced reliance on international markets; establishment of effective communication channels; and preparation for providing aid to directly assist supply chains and support consumer purchasing power.
There are numerous examples of no-take marine reserves effectively conserving fish stocks within their boundaries. However, no-take reserves can be rendered ineffective and turned into 'paper parks' ...through poor compliance and weak enforcement of reserve regulations. Long-term monitoring is thus essential to assess the effectiveness of marine reserves in meeting conservation and management objectives. This study documents the present state of the 15-year old no-take zone (NTZ) of South El Ghargana within the Nabq Managed Resource Protected Area, South Sinai, Egyptian Red Sea. Previous studies credited willing compliance by the local fishing community for the increased abundances of targeted fish within the designated NTZ boundaries compared to adjacent fished or take-zones. We compared benthic habitat and fish abundance within the NTZ and the adjacent take sites open to fishing, but found no significant effect of the reserve. Instead, the strongest evidence was for a simple negative relationship between fishing pressure and distance from the closest fishing village. The abundance of targeted piscivorous fish increased significantly with increasing distance from the village, while herbivorous fish showed the opposite trend. This gradient was supported by a corresponding negative correlation between the amount of discarded fishing gear observed on the reef and increasing distance from the village. Discarded fishing gear within the NTZ suggested decreased compliance with the no-take regulations. Our findings indicate that due to non-compliance the no-take reserve is no longer functioning effectively, despite its apparent initial successes and instead a gradient of fishing pressure exists with distance from the nearest fishing community.
Unexplained oyster mass mortalities threaten to destabilize the oyster industry on Canada's west coast if left unexplored. A range of potentially causative factors have been identified by the ...industry and the scientific community but the effects and magnitudes of these factors on oyster mortality risks remain unknown. Through a structured expert elicitation questionnaire, this study presents industry and scientific experts' calibrated judgements of cause of this multifactorial problem. We document low agreement among scientists and oyster growers with regards to important causative groups of factors. There is some agreement that factors like water temperature, seasonality, bacterial pathogens, affect oysters suspended in water and reared in trays, particularly if they are large oysters. However, both scientists and growers harbored differing views about the age and size of oysters susceptible to mass mortalities and the role of food availability and gametogenesis in contributing to mass mortalities. We discuss potential sources of these differing opinions and misconceptions. Our findings also highlight the need for additional research to resolve some of the uncertainty in experts' perceptions of cause. Risk communication efforts in the future should focus on these differing perspectives to work toward mutually viable decisions and solutions.
•Unexplained oyster mass mortalities threaten Canadian west coast shellfish industry.•Expert elicitation yielded calibrated judgement of causes of oyster mass mortalities.•Scientists and oyster growers have low agreement about causative factor groups.•Risk communication can highlight differing opinions and clarify misconceptions.
Abstract As a vital source of nutrition, cultural identity, and economic activity, seafood has become one of the most globally traded commodities worldwide. However, increased concerns about food ...security, coupled with the disruptive effects of climate change, contagious diseases, and geopolitical conflict, are bringing acute attention to the need for food system transformation at multiple scales. Here, we investigate the United States’ potential to achieve seafood “independence” and maximize health benefits to the nation by integrating production, utilization, yield, and consumption data across seven regions of the United States and nationally over 50 years (1970–2021). Although the United States is the second largest importer of seafood worldwide, findings from this study show that self-reliance at the national level is achievable, though the ability of different subregions to meet demand is variable. Achieving greater seafood independence would require shifts in consumer behavior, investments in infrastructure, and continual adaptation in the face of climate change.
We studied the fish fauna of Raigad District for two years from August 2008 to August 2010. Sixty six freshwater and secondary freshwater fish species belonging to 31 families and 53 genera were ...collected from various sampling sites and local markets along the banks of Patalganga, Bhogawati, Amba, Kundalika, Mandad and Savitri river systems present in Raigad District, Maharashtra, northern Western Ghats. Cyprinids were the most dominant group represented by 22 fish species belonging to 13 genera followed by the loaches, croakers and gobies belonging to the family Balitoridae, Sciaenidae and Gobiidae respectively (three species from each family). Of the 66 fish species, five belong to the Vulnerable (VU), four to Near Threatened (NT), 37 to the Least Concern (LC) category and 20 were found to be not evaluated for IUCN Red List criteria. Raigad District is under severe threat of rapid industrialization and urbanization. Further, introduced exotic fish species are becoming a major threat to the indigenous fish fauna of Raigad District. Implementation of ecosystem based adaptation plans and conservation measures are necessary to protect the diverse, endemic and threatened fish fauna of Raigad District.
Islands offer unique model systems for studying fisheries development in relation to the growing global seafood trade. This study examines how export-driven fisheries in India's oceanic islands ...(Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep Islands) differ significantly as a result of their varied history, culture, available infrastructure and market access. Despite being geographically closer to export centres on the Indian mainland, processing and transport infrastructure in the Lakshadweep Islands are limited. This only allows for the trade of non-perishable commodities like dried tuna that are caught using traditional pole-and-line fishing techniques, restricting reef exploitation to local preference-based consumption and opportunistic export. The Andaman Islands, on the other hand, with multiple daily flight connections and large private and government processing facilities, are better connected to export markets. The relatively recent and multicultural fisheries of these islands supply marine commodity chains for reef fishery goods such as dried shark fins, frozen snapper fillets and chilled groupers. The Nicobar Islands are furthest away from mainland export centres and are mostly populated by indigenous communities – fishing here is mostly for subsistence and local sale. Revised estimates of travel times to export market centres are counterintuitive in terms of geographical distances and are significantly different from travel times to local markets.
Different seafood supply chain pathways contribute to or conversely detract from the resilience and adaptive capacity of the fishing sector. Direct seafood marketing strategies shorten the link ...between seafood harvesters and consumers. These strategies appear to be relatively resistant to systemic food system disruptions, making them a potentially important segment of a resilient food system providing benefits to consumers and harvesters. However, little is known about the scale and diversity of the direct seafood marketing sector in the United States. This paper outlines the advantages of collecting data on direct seafood marketing in the US. Additionally, we describe our methodology for creating a sampling frame of direct seafood marketers. We provide initial results from the first national assessment of direct seafood marketing practices, including results from a questionnaire distributed to 39,511 commercial seafood harvesters engaging in wild capture fisheries. Direct seafood marketing was a common strategy among respondents, and the most popular strategy involved selling to a source-identified distributor, i.e. intermediaries who identify the harvester at the point of sale. When combined with data on direct seafood marketing permits, it is estimated that 12% of US seafood harvesters engage in direct seafood sales. These findings suggest that direct marketing is a ubiquitous practice in the commercial fishing sector in the US. Understanding scale and diversity of direct seafood marketing in the US can provide information needed for targeted investments in policies, funding, and technical assistance programs that build diverse, resilient seafood supply chains, and benefit the fishing sector and food security of the nation.
There are numerous examples of no-take marine reserves effectively conserving fish stocks within their boundaries. However, no-take reserves can be rendered ineffective and turned into 'paper parks' ...through poor compliance and weak enforcement of reserve regulations. Long-term monitoring is thus essential to assess the effectiveness of marine reserves in meeting conservation and management objectives. This study documents the present state of the 15-year old no-take zone (NTZ) of South El Ghargana within the Nabq Managed Resource Protected Area, South Sinai, Egyptian Red Sea. Previous studies credited willing compliance by the local fishing community for the increased abundances of targeted fish within the designated NTZ boundaries compared to adjacent fished or take-zones. We compared benthic habitat and fish abundance within the NTZ and the adjacent take sites open to fishing, but found no significant effect of the reserve. Instead, the strongest evidence was for a simple negative relationship between fishing pressure and distance from the closest fishing village. The abundance of targeted piscivorous fish increased significantly with increasing distance from the village, while herbivorous fish showed the opposite trend. This gradient was supported by a corresponding negative correlation between the amount of discarded fishing gear observed on the reef and increasing distance from the village. Discarded fishing gear within the NTZ suggested decreased compliance with the no-take regulations. Our findings indicate that due to non-compliance the no-take reserve is no longer functioning effectively, despite its apparent initial successes and instead a gradient of fishing pressure exists with distance from the nearest fishing community.
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