Brazil croaker and whitemouth croaker - trawl & bottom gillnet

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Overview

FIP partners Ayamos Foods Service, Cais do Atlântico and CeDePesca have committed to the sustainability of Brazil’s croaker and whitemouth croaker bottom trawl and gillnet fisheries.

Croaker (Umbrina canosai) and whitemouth croaker (Micropogonias furnieri) are demersal species intensively exploited on the southern and southeastern continental shelf of Brazil, mainly caught by bottom trawl and gillnet fleets and of great economic importance. Stock assessments conducted out for these species show that croaker and whitemouth croaker are overexploited. Furthermore, the MSC pre-assessments completed by CeDePesca in November 2021 (croaker) and December 2023 (whitemouth croaker) showed that the fishery-specific management system is not enough to rebuild the stock nor to ensure that it fluctuates around a level consistent with its Maximum Sustainable Yield. Furthermore, at the start of this FIP, the harvest strategy is not well structured, there is no harvest control rule, and there has been no continuous fishery statistics program since 2008. This FIP will aim at improving fishery practices and policies in Brazil so that stocks can be rebuilt to their optimal level.

In Brazil, fisheries are managed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (MAPA), through the Secretariat of Aquaculture and Fisheries (SAP). However, the Permanent Committee for the Management and Sustainable Use of Southeastern and Southern Demersal Resources (CPG), which had the objective of providing advice for the sustainable exploitation of demersal resources –including croaker– was suspended in 2019. Recently, in April 2022, the SAP/MAPA published a list of the institutions that would compose the CPG. This FIP will aim at achieving the actual reinstatement of the CPG for Southeastern and Southern Demersal Resources and to ensure it meets in a regular fashion to address serious issues in the fishery.

In general, this FIP aims to address all the sustainability hurdles that were identified through the MSC pre-assessments, and Ayamo Foods, Cais do Atlântico and CeDePesca are keen to join efforts with other stakeholders in the supply chain to achieve a certifiable status for fisheries.

FIP Description 

FIP partners Ayamos Foods Service, Cais do Atlântico and CeDePesca have committed to the sustainability of Brazil’s croaker and whitemouth croaker bottom trawl and gillnet fisheries.

FIP Objective(s) 

The ultimate objective of this FIP is to achieve the fishery’s certifiable status against the MSC standard by April 2027, in a socially responsible way. To this end, the FIP has the following objectives:

1. Ensure the design and adoption of a harvest strategy that includes recovery objectives for the fish stock, harvest control rules and tools, appropriate control and surveillance measures, and stock monitoring schemes by April 2027.

2. Support the authorities in the re-establishment of the Permanent Management Committees at the national level by January 2023, and promote the adoption of decision-making processes that result in strategies to achieve the fishery-specific objectives using the precautionary approach by April 2027.

3. Achieve the restart of government-led data collection programs and ensure the inclusion of aspects related to other components of the ecosystem (secondary species, ETP, and habitats) by April 2024.

4. As of April 2023, ensure that data is collected in quantity and quality sufficient to conduct regular risk analyses and to estimate the risk that the fisheries pose to other components of the ecosystem (primary species, secondary species, ETP species, and habitats).

5. Achieve the conduction of regular stock assessments by official research entities by April 2027.

6. Comply with the requirements of the FisheryProgress’ Human Rights and Social Responsibility policy throughout the duration of the FIP.

FIP Type 
Comprehensive
FIP Stage 
Stage 3: FIP Implementation
Start and Projected End Dates
April 2022
April 2027
Next Progress Report Due 
Friday, January 31, 2025
Species 
Common Name 
Argentine Croaker
Scientific Name
Umbrina canosai
Common Name 
Corvina
Scientific Name
Micropogonias furnieri
Gear Type 
Bottom Gillnet
Trawl
Location
FAO Major Fishing Area
Area 41 (Atlantic, Southwest)
Exclusive Economic Zones
Country 
Brazil
Geographic Scope 
Southern Brazil
Landings
Estimated Total FIP Landings 
1,500 metric tons
Estimated Total Fishery Landings 
23,000 metric tons
Landings Date 
December 2023
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FIP at a Glance

View current status
April 01, 2022
75% 11% 14%
Progress Rating (A) Advanced Progress

Reserved for comprehensive FIPs that have achieved a Stage 4 or 5 result within the past 12 months.

(B) Good Progress

A basic FIP that has achieved a Stage 4 or 5 result within 12 months.

(C) Some Recent Progress
  • A FIP that has achieved a Stage 4 or 5 result in more than 12 (but less than 24) months AND has reported a Stage 3 activity within the past six months.
  • A FIP younger than 12 months that has never achieved a Stage 4 or 5 result but has reported a Stage 3 activity within the first 12 months.
(D) Some Past Progress
  • A FIP that has achieved a Stage 4 or 5 result in more than 12 (but less than 24) months BUT has not reported a Stage 3 activity within the past six months.
  • A FIP for which the most recent Stage 4 or 5 result is more than 24 (but less than 36) months old AND a Stage 3 activity has been reported within six months.
  • A FIP 12-36 months old that has never reported a Stage 4 or 5 result AND has reported a Stage 3 activity within the past six months.
(E) Negligible Progress
  • A FIP for which the most recent Stage 4 or 5 result is more than 24 (but less than 36) months old, with no Stage 3 activity reported in the last six months.
  • A FIP younger than 12 months with no Stage 3 activity reported within 12 months.
  • A FIP 12-36 months old that has never reported a Stage 4 or 5 result AND has not reported a Stage 3 activity within the past six months.

The ratings are currently derived by SFP from publicly available data on FIP websites, including FisheryProgress.org, and are determined using the following methodology: View PDF
D Some Past Progress
Actions Complete

This pie chart represents completed environmental actions. Non-completed environmental actions may contain completed sub-tasks that are not illustrated here. For more information on environmental action progress visit the Actions Progress tab.
  • Complete
  • Incomplete
Next Update Due FisheryProgress requires a FIP to provide update reports every six months, and two missed reports will render the FIP inactive. If a report is overdue, this date will appear red.
Jan 2025
Target End Date
Apr 2027

FIP Leads

Organization Name 
CeDePesca
Organization Type 
NGO
Primary Contact 
Rochelle Cruz
Email 
rochelle.cruz@cedepesca.net
Website Name 
CeDePesca's Site
FIP Identification Number The FIP Identification Number is automatically generated by FisheryProgress when a FIP profile is created. While the number itself is not meaningful, they are used by NGOs, academia, and industry to refer to FIPs in a consistent way.
18173