Seafood Directions '99 - the inaugural biennial national seafood industry conference
The Australian Seafood Industry Council has identified a need to hold a biennial national seafood industry conference where the industry can gather in an appropriate forum to discuss and learn about issues of critical nature affecting the industry and to use this forum as a means of providing the basis for future planning and directions. The ASIC have identified the need to hold this conference bi-ennually on an ongoing basis. The ASIC have agreed that the venues for future conferences will be: 2001 Qld, 2003 WA, 2005 NSW.
There are a range of industry needs which have been identified as critical and which a National Seafood Conference can immediately and directly address at a national level.
1. There is a critical need for the seafood industry of Australia to promote itself and it's image.
2. There is also a critical need for industry to address the public's perception of seafood and associated issues such as quality, health benefits and product promotion.
3. There is a clear need for the Australian seafood industry to develop a 'conference culture' at a national level, which is critical to ensuring effective information transfer.
4. Other issues such as training and education, marketing and industry development also have international aspects which could be addressed through attracting international industry delegates to Australia through a conference.
5. There is a need for more extensive communication/interaction within the industry at national level and a national conference will provide an ideal forum for this to occur.
Additionally there is a need for national recognition within Australia's seafood industry of the value of its members and their operations. To promote this culture, the timing of the seafood conference and the fact that it will provide a critical mass of industry people will be the opportunity
to host the Inaugural National Seafood Industry Awards Dinner. This dinner is fully supported and will be fully funded by ASIC with the Project Management Team taking on the responsibility for the organisation of the event.
Final report
While the Australian Seafood Industry is valued in excess of $2bn, there has never been a national seafood conference in Australia. During 1998, the Australian Seafood Industry Council (ASIC) recognised that a conference would provide opportunities for industry to showcase its advances in recent years, particularly in quality, training, environmental performance and the institutional framework for efficient fisheries management.
It was recognized that a national conference with an international profile would also be an opportunity to promote domestic consumption of Australian seafood by highlighting the quality and health benefits of the products.
During 1998 the South Australian Seafood Industry Development Board was also expressing interest in holding a seafood conference in South Australia in 1999. The two concepts were brought together and the South Australian Government, through the Seafood Industry Development Board, pledged $50,000 to support a national seafood industry conference in Adelaide in 1999. This commitment was made on the condition that the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) match the pledge.
In late 1998, the Australian Seafood Industry Council (ASIC) awarded the right to hold the inaugural National Seafood Industry Conference to the newly established South Australian seafood industry body, the Seafood Council (SA) Ltd. In recognition of the advantages gained from hosting a national industry conference, ASIC and the Seafood Council (SA) formed a partnership to progress and manage the conference.
Timing of the event was organized to coincide with Tasting Australia, a major bi-ennial food promotion to be held during October 1999. The natural synergy between holding the conference followed by a significant presence at Tasting Australia offered significant marketing and profiling opportunities to overseas and interstate buyers, international media and approximately 40,000 consumers who were expected to attend the event.
Meeting sustainability expectations: translating and aligning objectives, reporting and evaluation of the performance of Australian fisheries
Tactical Research Fund: Shark futures - a synthesis of available data on Mako and Porbeagle sharks in Australasian waters - current status and future directions
The shortfin mako, longfin mako and porbeagle sharks have widespread distributions in temperate and tropical waters of all the world’s oceans. Makos are bycatch and by-product species of pelagic longline and gillnet fisheries where they are taken for their meat and high-value fins. They are also highly-prized recreational species in many regions. Makos have low productivity, typical of sharks that do not mature until reaching a large size, producing few young and where individuals are unlikely to reproduce annually. Risk assessments both nationally and in the Atlantic concluded that mako sharks are at the highest risk of all pelagic sharks. These species are listed by the IUCN as Vulnerable globally and Critically Endangered in the Mediterranean. Significant population declines in the Mediterranean Sea and the North Atlantic resulted in these species being listed under Appendix II of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) in 2008 and concomitant listing under Australia’s EPBC Act in January 2010. This effectively meant that the target commercial or recreational fishing for these species was prohibited in Australian waters. In May 2010 the National Recreational Mako Shark Fishery - Management Forum identified the need for a study to identify and propose cost effective ways to fill key gaps in the collective knowledge of these species. In July 2010, after considerable debate, a legislative amendment was made to allow for the recreational fishing of mako and porbeagle sharks in Commonwealth areas despite the offence provisions under the EPBC Act. Commercial targeting of these species remains an offence, however, there are exemptions where they are taken as bycatch under accredited management plans. The Federal Environment Minister also directed DEWHA/SEWPaC to work with Fisheries Managers to provide a “more comprehensive information base on mako and porbeagle sharks for the future”. This project is a direct result of these needs.
Final report
The workshop provided a highly successful construct to discuss data-sets and current research as well as facilitating collaborative partnerships between researchers, management agencies and
stakeholders. It compiled a comprehensive information base on mako and porbeagle sharks in Australasian waters to support management and inform policy decisions into the future. These elements combined to form a useful framework from which not only to guide nationally coordinated initiatives for mako and porbeagle shark research, but also offer a model for addressing similar issues for other species with international cross-jurisdictional links that require a nationally coordinated approach to research and management.