BFAR: Compliance with sardine fishing ban in Zambo del Norte high

Fishermen and canners are complying with the three-month ban on sardine fishing in Zamboanga del Norte that started on Dec. 1, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources said Wednesday.   "The compliance rate is almost 100 percent (because stakeholders) know that we are really serious about implementing it," Fisheries Bureau director Asis Perez told reporters in an interview.   Four boats are now patrolling offshore Zamboanga del Norte to ensure that the ban is observed, Perez noted.   BFAR imposed the ban after statistics showed that stocks of Indian sardines or tamban in Zamboanga del Norte were on the decline.   With the “lesser occurrence” of Indian sardines, the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics noted in its latest data that the volume of tamban unloaded in the Zamboanga Peninsula dropped 11,658.16 metric tons (MT) to 31,284.51 MT from 42,942.67 MT in July to September.   It is important to ensure that tamban will always be available to Filipino consumers as an affordable source of protein, according to BFAR.   Despite the ban, the Fisheries Bureau has assured that the cost of canned sardines will not go up as canners still have enough supply in cold storage.   With the three-month ban in place, Indian sardines can regenerate, increasing the supply and improving the chances for a healthier sardine sector starting next year, the Fisheries Bureau said.   "Sardines are very dynamic specie of saltwater fish. It can regenerate 19 times whenever they are allowed to spawn," Perez noted. — VS, GMA News