Tackling the Poorly Regulated Live Reef Food Fish Trade

For almost three decades, an international trade in live reef fishes has grown and flourished in the Indo-Pacific region in response to demand for ultra-fresh seafood, a culinary tradition of Hong Kong and southern China. The trade although not large by global fishery standards, is disproportionately valuable because it supplies a luxury seafood market with high value fishes, including endangered grouper and wrasse species. Its annual retail value is estimated to substantially exceed US$1 billion, with some species fetching in excess of US$600 per kg at retail.

However much of the trade is illegal, unregulated and/or unmonitored, as such, trade volumes including imports into Hong Kong are considerably underestimated. The latter by as much as 50%. This situation is leading to serial depletions of once healthy and productive LRFF fisheries in the region.

Research – Mostly Legal but not Sustainable – How Airlines Can Support Sustainable Trade in Live Reef Food Fish

In 2013, the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) Environmental Fund commissioned ADMCF to undertake research on the regional LRFFT as it relates to Hong Kong. The aviation industry accounts for the transport of about two thirds of all live reef fish imports into Hong Kong. The research findings were documented in the report ‘Mostly Legal but not Sustainable- How Airlines Can Support Sustainable Trade in Live Reef Food Fish’ which highlighted environmental and social concerns associated with the LRFFT and the role of the aviation industry in particular. It further provided recommendations for the industry addressing some of the challenges identified and provided the basis for a detailed review of the regional LRFFT.

Research – The Trade in Live Reef Food Fish – Going, Going, Gone

Following the release of ‘Mostly Legal but not Sustainable’, ADMCF, Swire Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of Hong Kong, and the WWF Coral Triangle Programme, undertook detailed analysis of the regional LRFFT trade including both trade dynamics and regulation. The findings were published in the report ‘The Trade in Live Reef Food Fish- Going, Going, Gone’, indicating that wild-caught reef fish species could be gone from diner’s tables within our life time, if we do not act now to stem this burgeoning and often illegal trade.  Detailed recommendations were provided that provide the basis of on-going work.