The Pros And Cons Of Overfishing Of The Bluefin Tuna

We all have things we care about, but we all do not care about the same things. If there is a problem you believe needs to be fixed and you seem to feel that not a lot of people are aware of this problem or plain and simple just do not care, then it is your job to inform them of the situation and convince them to do something about it. If I were to tell you we need to stop the overfishing of the Bluefin Tuna most of you wouldn’t have a care in the world. However you need to care, these are beautiful creatures of the ocean and not enough is being done to stop them from being overfished due to the high demand for them in the sushi market. We need to put pressure on organizations like ICCAT to lower quotas and put an end to tuna auctions in Japan. When you think of sushi you think of Japanese food, well that is correct, according to Nigel Williams, author of the article Profit of Gloom, Japan consumes just about 80% of all Bluefin Tuna, which comes to about 600,000 tons each year (Williams). It is easy to say well cut Japan’s consumption of sushi, allow them to eat only a certain amount. Over here in America where sushi is …show more content…
ICCAT is the International Commission of the Conservation of the Atlantic Tuna, and straight from the ICCAT website they describe themselves as an “inter-governmental fishery organization responsible for the conservation of tunas and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent seas.” (ICCAT website). So basically they are in charge providing quotas, tracking, and managing tuna. It is not like ICCAT hasn’t cut quotas at all, in fact, in an article written by Bart DiFiore called, The Hottest Blood: Journeys of the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna, he states that “Intense pressure has forced ICCAT to cut quotas by more than half by 2007” (DiFiore 63). This pressure needs to be kept on ICCAT in order to ensure that the tuna’s future is a sustainable