SQUIDS IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Unregulated squid fisheries are headed for disaster

“Squids are essential to healthy, functioning oceans. As both predator and prey, they sustain entire food webs and perform vital ocean functions.”

Last century, after relentless industrial fishing, finfish catches peaked at 130 million tonnes and have been in decline ever since. Now, squids could face the same fate, with unregulated industrial fishing on the high seas decimating these vital species. With a rapid increase in squid fishing occurring despite a lack of adequate data or environmental regulation, it seems the industry has learned nothing from the depletion of finfish populations all those years ago.

In the last two years, Greenpeace International has laid bare the insufficient nature of current ocean governance, exposing the ways in which the status quo fails to protect biodiversity on the high seas. We, alongside Greenpeace Germany, have conducted regional studies (South West Atlantic, Western Indian Ocean), sectoral studies (in relation to ghost fishing gear, transshipments and deep seabed mining), and reported on the plight of species that play key roles in marine ecosystems, such as sharks, turtles and now squid. These analyses shed a light on the numerous gaps in ocean governance, ranging from fisheries management organisations and conservation agreements, to shipping regulators and flag States.

In this report, we examine the expansion of squid fisheries and look at three regions where this expansion has occurred. We consider the ways in which these fisheries have been allowed to expand with little scrutiny or management rules – even in areas where Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) have a mandate to manage them – and explore why several major squid fisheries have been characterised as unregulated