The Fisheries Problem

The fact that overfishing is one of the most pressing issues facing the oceans is barely noticeable in our daily lives. Supermarkets offer fish fingers for €1.99, even though domestic Atlantic cod stocks are overfished or indeed fully depleted [Source 1]. Shelves are stocked to capacity with tuna, skipjack, coalfish and trout, most of them bearing the MSC seal, which is designed to convey a comforting sense of environmentally conscious consumption. Yet even assuming genuinely sustainable practices, the seal itself is nothing more than a self-fulfilling prophecy – intact fish stocks continue to fall victim to our demand, until they too are entirely overfished.

Only a selective fishing method where only the specific target fish is caught can be sustainable; this technique is known as "pole and line" fishing. In contrast, several other fishing methods are inherently unsustainable because the technology deployed inevitably captures an immense volume of other marine life as "bycatch". Germany ended driftnet fishing in 1993, and driftnets were internationally banned in 1994. Bottom trawling is prohibited in the Maldives, and Greece also regulates this practice. Germany is slow to act. Globally, industrial fisheries continue to deploy longlines, bottom trawls and FADs (fish aggregating devices) in purse seine fishing.

Looking beneath the surface of the sea, everything appears normal: small fish dart between seagrass and coral, and the underwater world continues to captivate divers and snorkelers. Only a retrospective view reveals what we ourselves can barely perceive:

When viewing archival footage from Jacques-Yves Cousteau, John “Charlie” Veron, Sylvia Earle [see also Source 2] and other prominent pioneers of marine research, it quickly becomes clear that our oceans once harboured a multiple of the life remaining today. When once asked where the most beautiful dive site in the world was, Sylvia Earle replied: “Almost anywhere, fifty years ago” [Source 3].

Our memory of the past continuously adapts to present impressions; our perception of constancy is shaped by the conditions we have been accustomed to since childhood. This dilemma of the "shifting baseline" is encountered in many everyday scenarios and further complicates conservation efforts aimed at countering threats to our ecosystems. Yet we can find examples of declining fish abundance directly on our doorstep in the very recent past.

The Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) was so abundant until the 20th century that it served as a staple food for the poorer populations of Europe whilst simultaneously enabling the rise of the Hanseatic League - until overfishing and ecological fluctuations led to a collapse in the 21st century [Source 4]. Until then, herring stocks had been believed to be inexhaustible. Today, many decades and numerous quota reductions later, the Atlantic herring population is again considered stable [Source 1].

The situation is different for the Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua): one of the most prominent examples of overfishing occurred during the 1980s and 1990s off the coast of Newfoundland, where cod stocks were once so abundant that countless people moved to Canada to seek wealth as fishers. It was Canada's "gold rush". Following a decline in stocks to less than 1% of the historical biomass, a moratorium was negotiated in 1992, halting further fishing [Source 5]. Since then, recovery has been exceptionally slow. Additional fishing pressure and adverse ecological conditions in the North Sea [Source 6] and Baltic Sea [Source 7] have led to a severe decline of cod in the Northern Hemisphere, and the species is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List [Source 8].

According to the latest report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), 34% of global fish stocks are currently overfished, 60% are fished at maximum sustainable limits, and only 6% are “underfished” [Source 1]. Since 1990, global fish consumption has more than doubled (222%).

The only permanent solution to the problem of overfishing is to address the root cause: reducing fish consumption. Even if it may not feel like it due to the low price of fish in our local markets, we must no longer take it for granted, but must transition to the conscious consumption of genuinely sustainably caught fish. We do not require fish in our diet. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends consuming 1-2 portions of fish per week to meet requirements for omega-3 fatty acids [Source 9]. Animals (including humans) cannot synthesise these fatty acids themselves and must obtain them through diet. This raises the question: where do fish obtain their omega-3? From the algae they or their prey have consumed. To maintain healthy fatty acid levels, consuming plants is therefore recommended. Nuts, for example, contain abundant omega-3 fatty acids while being far more sustainable than fish.

Currently, 11% of the global population is undernourished, particularly in countries within South Asia, Africa, and especially sub-Saharan Africa [Source 10]. With increasing extreme weather events, these populations will rely even more heavily on fish consumption in the future, whereas for us, it remains a luxury product.

Through our economic practices, we harm populations that already lack resources because we have grown accustomed to the luxury of the Western world – another baseline that has shifted drastically and now provokes outcry when we are asked to relinquish our luxury.

Yet it could be simple. The world produces enough food for everyone. It merely needs to be distributed equitably.