In 2018, the MSC and partner Genova Seafood, along with spearfisherwoman Valentine Thomas, traveled to the Marshall Islands in the Central Pacific to learn from the world’s largest certified sustainable tuna fishery.
The Marshall Islands are member to the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA), which was established in 1982 by island nations in the Central and South Pacific to manage skipjack and yellowfin tuna fishing responsibly. For many of the island nations, the fishing industry and daily life go hand in hand. Most families are involved in the industry, from fishing out on the ocean to working in the processing plant to monitoring that the fishery is sustainably managed. The PNA recognizes that without fish in the ocean, there would be no food or livelihoods. By protecting the ocean’s resources, the countries may continue to thrive. In 2011, the PNA joined the MSC program and became certified sustainable.
Follow the MSC, Genova Seafood, and Valentine Thomas's journey in the videos below to learn about life in the Marshall Islands, tuna fishing, and what goes in to a sustainable can of tuna.
You can read about the PNA tuna fishery in the MSC's fishery story, Small Islands, Big Opportunities.