Rising fuel costs may force one-third of ocean-going long-line tuna fishing boats across the world to halt operations, an industry group said yesterday.
About 140 boats from Taiwan, China, South Korea, Fiji and elsewhere are already standing idle at port, said Yuichiro Harada, managing director at the Tokyo-based Organization for the Promotion of Responsible Tuna Fisheries.
“Another 260 boats are considering suspending operations, bringing the total number to about 400” out of 1,174 boats operated by members of the organization, Harada said.
“The more you operate, the more money you lose” because of high fuel costs, he said, adding that a typical Japanese boat would lose ¥100,000 (US$970) in one day of long-line open-ocean fishing.
How long the boats might stay in port for could vary from region to region and depend on whether fuel prices cool, he said.
The organization groups long-line open-ocean tuna fishing boats from Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, China, Equador, Seychelles, Fiji and Vanuatu. Most operators of such ships worldwide are members.
The halt is bound to cause a shortage in raw tuna meat used for Japan’s beloved sashimi, the organization said.
While regretting the looming shortage, Harada blamed speculative investment for pushing up oil prices.
“It is a very big problem for the food industry that it is affected by speculation,” he said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-Wong tomorrow, which it said would possibly make landfall near central Taiwan. As of 2am yesterday, Fung-Wong was about 1,760km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving west-northwest at 26kph. It is forecast to reach Luzon in the northern Philippines by tomorrow, the CWA said. After entering the South China Sea, Typhoon Fung-Wong is likely to turn northward toward Taiwan, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said, adding that it would likely make landfall near central Taiwan. The CWA expects to issue a land
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The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
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