Shared fisheries

In the interests of informing the debate on Shared Fisheries by identifying the views of the public and recreational fishers, the New Zealand Seafood Industry Council commissioned some independent research of 1000 people in the general population which included 249 people who had fished twice or more in the past 12 months (the general population results have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent).

The complete report of the survey is available on the link below, but the summarized the findings are:

• 65% of NZers think that both recreational and commercial fishers should be required to catch less if there is not enough fish to meet demand
• More than half (56%) of the recreational fishers agree
• 85% of NZers think that up to 10 fish per recreational fisher is a reasonable daily allowance (the current bag limit for most finfish is 20)
• 85% of recreational fishers agree with that daily allowance
• 64% of NZers think that it is reasonable to require recreational fishers to record their catch
• 55% of recreational fishers agree

We now know that:

• Only one quarter of all New Zealanders fished recreationally twice or more in the past 12 months
• That 25% of New Zealanders have never fished recreationally
• 6 out of 10 recreational fishers report that they are satisfied with their catch
• Nearly all New Zealanders (90%) eat fish at least once a month; 45% eat fish at least once a week

Some of these findings are in direct contrast to the positions adopted by some groups claiming to represent the interests of recreational fishers, namely:

• The needs of recreational fishers should take precedence over commercial fishers in circumstances where there is not enough fish to meet the demands of both groups.
• Recreational fishers should not be required to record how many fish they catch (despite the fact that catch information is critical to sustainable management of our fisheries and a mandatory requirement for commercial fishers).

We believe there is a need to re-evaluate where the policies are going in light of this evidence about what ordinary New Zealanders think, including recreational fishers. Every person, and not just recreational fishers, has a stake in the outcome of an important policy debate that will have a significant impact on the way the country's inshore fisheries are managed.