Value Chain Fish

• Fishing
• Wholesaler
• Processing
• Sales
• Sales

• • Environmental
    indicators
  • Emissions, effluent and waste
  • Resource consumption

    Fish stocks have dwindled due to massive overfishing in coastal waters, meaning that the industry is forced to exploit increasingly distant marine regions. Although catch levels are now slightly below record levels, the problem remains: aquaculture merely meets the rising demand. At the same time, they continue to put pressure on wild fish stocks, as part of the catch is processed into fishmeal and fish oil to feed farmed fish.

  • Biodiversity

    It is not only the scale of fishing but also the fishing methods that have a decisive impact on biodiversity in the oceans and inland waters. Bottom trawls, gillnets and longlines harm marine life by destroying seabeds and killing marine mammals and seabirds as by-catch. Abandoned fishing gear, which continues to catch fish uncontrollably (‘ghost fishing’), exacerbates the problem. Furthermore, fishing across the entire food chain has drastically reduced stocks of prey fish. Aquaculture, once thought of as a sustainable alternative to wild-caught fish, causes oxygen depletion in the affected waters when practised intensively. Coastal mangrove forests in particular, which are ideally suited to fish farms, often fall victim to aquaculture within a matter of years.

  • Transport emissions
  • Animal welfare

    Animal welfare is under threat in the fishing industry due to the transport of live fish under conditions that are not species-appropriate. In addition, the by-catch of marine mammals and seabirds leads, in some cases, to serious injuries and the death of animals. In scientific circles, it remains a matter of debate whether and in what way fish experience pain.

  • Human rights
  • Discrimination

    Migrants, in particular, work in harsh conditions on many small fishing boats. There, they live in dilapidated and filthy accommodation. Reports from South-East Asia also describe how their superiors physically abuse them.

  • Interests of the local
    population

    The fishing and fish processing sectors are facing problems: jobs are being lost and food security is suffering. The main causes are overfishing due to poor stock management, the granting of fishing licences to foreign fleets, and illegal fishing. Greater market integration is forcing local fishermen to catch high-value fish for export rather than supplying cheaper species for the domestic market. Aquaculture can trigger land disputes, for example when it displaces rice cultivation. Furthermore, its expansion poses a risk of water pollution and a decline in soil quality.

  • Child labour

    Simple tasks involved in the processing of fish and fish products increase the risk of child labour in some regions. Children often help to supplement the family’s income because their parents’ earnings from fish processing plants are not enough to support the whole family. There are usually no contractual arrangements in place. Reports of child labour also emerge time and again from inland fisheries in some African countries.

  • Forced and
    compulsory labour

    In the fishing industry, people are subjected to forced labour when they take up jobs on fishing vessels through recruitment agencies or brokers. They pay fees for recruitment, identity documents, residence and work permits, transport and commissions to the broker – often over a period of months or years. In the worst cases, the intermediaries confiscate the documents or forge them, leaving the workers completely dependent on them and trapping them in debt bondage. Similar structures can also be found amongst workers in fish processing plants (see ‘Employment relationship’). 

  • Freedom of association
  • Working practices/
    -quality
  • Employment
    status

    Precarious working conditions are particularly prevalent on small and medium-sized fishing vessels. Many workers, often migrants, work without a formal employment contract, for low pay, on long shifts and without compensation for overtime. They often do not know how long they will have to remain on board – sometimes for months, occasionally even years, without a break. In the worst-case scenario, they end up in debt bondage: they must first pay ‘fees’ for job placement, food and accommodation on the boat (see also ‘Forced and compulsory labour’).

  • Health and Safety at Work and
    Health

    Many migrants, recruited by agents, work on fishing boats, particularly in Asia. Without protective clothing and far from meeting standard safety requirements, they cast their nets on the high seas. On land, too, the workers who prepare the catch for sale lack suitable clothing. Many continue to work despite being ill because wages are low and there are no sick pay provisions.

  • Discrimination/
    Diversity

    Migrants, in particular, work in harsh conditions on many small fishing boats. There, they live in dilapidated and filthy accommodation. Reports from South-East Asia also describe how their superiors physically abuse them.
  • Governance
  • Corruption, bribery,
    acceptance of benefits

    There is a high risk of bribery at regional level in the allocation of fishing licences and the monitoring of catches, which is fuelling overfishing. Furthermore, it is alleged that business owners in the processing industry bribe fishermen in order to obtain illegal catches. Inspectors at the processing plants also appear to be accepting bribes.

  • Anti-competitive
    conduct
  • Compliance

    The granting of licences without due regard for sustainable fishing, combined with inadequate monitoring, exacerbates the problems of illegal fishing and overfishing. Flag states also contribute to this by issuing so-called ‘flags of convenience’ and allowing vessels to sail under their flag without regulating or monitoring fishing activities.

  • Tax evasion
  • Poor Governance

    Poor governance is a burden on some coastal states when they jeopardise jobs in the fishing and fish processing sectors by issuing an excessive number of fishing licences to foreign fleets. According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, they are required to strengthen domestic fisheries and grant fishing licences only for unused resources. However, it often remains unclear where the proceeds from these licences end up. Furthermore, structural weaknesses and limited financial resources make it difficult to protect domestic fish stocks and monitor exclusive economic zones.

  • Product
    responsibility
  • Customer safety

    The traceability of fish can already be compromised during transhipment from a fishing vessel to a transport vessel at sea. Those involved often deliberately use transhipment to conceal the origin of the fish. Even during onward transport and in processing plants, fish is sometimes mislabelled – whether in terms of species, origin or fishing method. This happens either deliberately or due to a lack of transparency and knowledge. At the end of the value chain, consumers or restaurant operators then receive incomplete or incorrect information.

  • Labelling of
    products

    The traceability of fish can already be compromised during transhipment from a fishing vessel to a transport vessel at sea. Those involved often deliberately use transhipment to conceal the origin of the fish. Even during onward transport and in processing plants, fish is sometimes mislabelled – whether in terms of species, origin or fishing method. This happens either deliberately or due to a lack of transparency and knowledge. At the end of the value chain, consumers or restaurant operators then receive incomplete or incorrect information.

  • Marketing, Advertising
  • Protection of customer data