Japan Busts Through Bluefin Quote By 25% In 2005 - Cuts Catch - Reuters [View All]

TOKYO - Japan, the world's top fish consumer, exceeded its catch quota for southern bluefin tuna by nearly 25 percent last year, forcing it to tighten fishing rules, officials said on Thursday. A voracious global appetite for fish, of which Japan's huge demand is a key part, has led to widespread overfishing and pushed many highly sought after species, including some varieties of bluefin tuna, close to the edge.

According to the United Nations, more than 70 percent of the world's commercially important fish stocks are either over-exploited, depleted, slowly recovering or close to the maximum sustainable level of exploitation.

In 2005, Japan exceeded its 6,065 tonne quota of southern bluefin tuna by 1,500 tonnes, according to the Fisheries Agency, which blamed sloppy record-keeping for the disparity.

"There are some years where there's a sudden jump in catches just before the season ends, before we're able to declare the season over," he added. "Going over the quota a bit is actually not that uncommon, but this year the excess was quite large, making us think we need to revise our management system."

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