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HUGH’S FISH FIGHT: THE BATTLE CONTINUES
Added on: 04/08/2011 | At: 15:03pm | By: Fish Fight Team
Six months ago, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall left the comfort of River Cottage behind, and went on a journey to find out what was really going on at the industrial end of our fisheries. What he found was that things are not just bad ... They’re mad. Half the fish caught in the North Sea are being thrown back into the sea, dead, because of crazy EU laws.
So he launched campaign to try to change those laws... And the response from the public has been incredible. Over 700 000 people have now signed the fish fight petition, and so many people emailed their MPs to protest about discards that they forced a debated in the Houses of Parliament.
As a direct result of the campaign, the British Government also decided to fund a six month study into what would happen if a discard ban was introduced. Even Prince Charles leant his support.
In July, the European Commission published their proposals for a new Common Fisheries Policy ... And they included recommendations for a discard ban. This would not have happened without the pressure of the Fish Fight. But that doesn’t mean that the law will actually change. There is another 18 months to go before the new Common Fisheries Policy becomes law, which is why Hugh went back to Brussels to launch the Fish Fight campaign in another 11 languages and countries. The pressure he generates across Europe could be the difference between success and failure, long term sustainable fisheries or more years of pointless waste.
And its not just discards. The Fish Fight also looked at how the tinned tuna we eat gets caught, and challenged some of the major retailers and suppliers to stop using fishing methods that lead to high levels of bycatch of sharks, turtles and rays. As as direct result of the pressure put on them by Fish Fight, first Tescos, and then Princes, Morrisons, Asda and lastly John West, all agreed to change their fishing methods over the next few years.
The Fish Fight follow up tells these, and other, stories, and encourages the public to keep thinking differently about fish, to try to eat new species, and to keep Fish Fighting!
HUGH’S FISH FIGHT: THE BATTLE CONTINUES will be broadcast on Channel 4 at 9pm on Monday August 8th
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