Find new markets, trawlers told after licence fiasco

IN THE face of serious bungling by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries that could cost SA its hake exports to the lucrative European market, an official has effectively told producers to go and find new markets.

The government appears to be turning away from western markets in favour of those in the East, and especially other members of the Brics group of emerging economies — Brazil, Russia, India and China.

SA’s commercial hake trawl fisheries could lose their Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) membership next month. It certifies the sustainability of the fishery.

Europe takes a large slice of SA’s deep sea trawler-caught hake catch — valued at R1,4bn a year.

Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tina JoematPettersson suspended SA’s annual observer programme through which scientific observers go out to sea to determine the size of SA’s hake stock, and how much can be caught sustainably.

This followed a dispute over tenders with a company that would have organised the observer cruise. Ms Joemat-Pettersson’s awarding of an R800m tender to black-owned Sekunjalo to run the department’s vessels for five years from April 1 was cancelled after previous tender holder, Smit Amandla, took the matter to the high court.

“European consumer pressure requires such certification for fish products, without which European markets are not available,” Lionel Adendorf, a Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries spokesman on fisheries, said.

“While we will not be able to access these markets, it will give us an opportunity to look at new markets, particularly where strong and solid trade relations exist.

“We have had access to the European market long before MSC was introduced as an eco-label. It is worth noting that MSC is not the only eco label — there are also others ... It therefore does not mean SA will have no access to the European markets, but that our white fish will not be available in certain stores where MSC is a requirement.

“A result of this will be a slight decline in profits for producers but we do not expect job losses.”

The MSC label is required by,