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Food Provision
HARVESTING SEAFOOD SUSTAINABLY Seafood is a fundamental component of our diet, helping to serve the basic protein needs of more than half of the worlds population. The Food Provision goal measures the amount of seafood harvested for human consumption and how sustainably it is. Sustainable harvest means that seafood was caught or captured in a renewable way given the marine ecosystems productive potential.

Global Goal Score

What is This?

Likely Future State

Goal By Country

13

%
How Does Your Country Compare?

*The estimate of a goals likely near-term future status is a function of four dimensions: Status, Trend, Pressure, and Resilience.

Sub-Goals
Food Provision is divided into two sub-goals: Wild-caught commercial seafood and Mariculture, or ocean-farmed seafood. The more seafood harvested or cultured sustainably, the higher the goal score. The wild-caught commercial seafood sub-goal evaluates the ability to obtain maximal wild harvests without damaging the oceans ability to continue providing fish for people in the future. Sustainable harvest of wild-caught seafood avoids excessively high exploitation of target species, and does not target threatened populations. Additionally, pressures upon surrounding habitats and high bycatch may influence the resilience of the ecosystem and, indirectly, the productivity of the fisheries. Sustainable mariculture supports food provisioning needs through practices that can be maintained over the long term. This includes not compromising the water quality in the farmed area and not relying on wild populations to feed or replenish the cultivated species.

Some mariculture practices, although they do not compromise future harvests, may impact the delivery of other goals, through habitat destruction and accidental release of non-native species. These factors do not affect the sustainability of mariculture, but their impact on the sustainability of other goals is captured as pressures when assessing such goals.

Wild Caught Fisheries

Why Are Wild Caught Fisheries Important?
Seafood caught in the wild is the main source of protein for more than one-fifth of the worlds population. This sub-goal evaluates the ability to obtain maximal wild harvests without damaging the oceans ability to continue providing fish for people in the future. The sustainable harvest of wild-caught seafood avoids the exploitation of target species and does not target threatened populations. Additionally, high bycatch and pressures upon surrounding habitats may influence ecosystem resilience and, indirectly, the productivity of fisheries. These aspects are captured in the resilience dimension of this goal. Daniel Pauly

Global Sub-Goal Score

What is This?

Likely Future State

13

*The estimate of a goals likely near-term future status is a function of four dimensions: Status, Trend, Pressure, and Resilience.

What Does This Score Mean?

The reference point for Fisheries is for the total landed biomass of wild-caught fish to be no more than 75% of the multispecies Maximum Sustainable Yield (mMSY). The mMSY was calculated by summing the Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) for all key species. The reference point is set 25% below mMSY to protect against the possibility that mMSY might overestimate the amount of fish that could be safely caught. It minimizes the possibility for overfishing and serves as a reference point for the maximum possible amount of fish that can be caught sustainably within a region. Countries are penalized for harvests above or below this reference level. A score of 100 would indicate that a countrys commercial fisheries are sustainably catching a total amount of fish that is as large as it can be without jeopardizing future catches.

Current Score
The current score of 25 indicates that most countries are significantly below their sustainable target values. Some countries are jeopardizing their future landings with unsustainable yields, while others are not producing as much wild-caught seafood as they could.

total amount of fish that is as large as it can be without jeopardizing future catches. A low score indicates one of two things that seafood is being caught in an unsustainable manner, or countries are not maximizing the potential to catch as much as sustainably possible within their marine waters.

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70 80 90

N/A

10

20

30

40

50

60

Download Infographic

How Is It Measured?
Present Status
Present Status is a goal's current value (based on the most recent available data) compared to a

EACH GOAL IS EVALUATED ON THE BASIS OF FOUR DIMENSIONS.

Trend
Trend is the average percent change in the present status for the most recent 5 years of data.

Pressures
Pressures are the sum of the ecological and social pressures that negatively affect scores for

Resilience
Resilience is the sum of the ecological factors and social initiatives (policies, laws, etc)

available data) compared to a reference point.

the most recent 5 years of data.

that negatively affect scores for a goal.

initiatives (policies, laws, etc) that can positively affect scores for a goal by reducing or eliminating pressures.

Pressures
Chemical Pollution

Pressures are human-caused stressors that influence both ecological and social systems, negatively affecting the ability of a goal to deliver its benefits to people.

Nutrient Pollution

Habitat Destruction Soft Bottom Subtidal Commercial Fishing High Bycatch

Habitat Destruction Hard Bottom Subtidal Commercial Fishing Low Bycatch

Habitat Destruction Intertidal Social Pressure

Alien Species

Genetic Escapes

Artisanal Fishing Low Bycatch

Artisanal Fishing High Bycatch

Status

Status refers to the current value of a goal relative to its goal-specific reference point. The reference point is the best condition for a goal that can reasonably be achieved; it is a target to aim for when taking actions to improve ocean health.

Fisheries Multispecies Maximum Sustainable Yield

Fish Oil Degree Of Exploitation Of Fished Stocks

Resilience
CBD Habitat

Resilience refers to the social, institutional, and ecological factors that positively affect the ability of a goal to deliver its benefits to people.

Marine Protected Areas EEZ

Fisheries Management Effectiveness

Ecological Integrity

Quality Of Governance

Artisanal Fishing Need

References
FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Paper No. 569. Rome, FAO. 2011. 334 pp. FAO The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture. 2010. MPAtlas. www.mpatlas.org.

Mariculture
Why Is Mariculture Important?
As humanitys population continues to expand, we must increasingly rely upon new and improved methods for cultivating food on land and in the ocean. The term aquaculture refers to the cultivation in water (fresh and saltwater) of animals or plants for human consumption. Mariculture refers to the commercial harvest of seafood that is farmraised in the ocean and along the coast. Sustainable mariculture supports food-provisioning needs through practices that can be maintained over the long term. This includes not compromising the water quality in the farmed area and not relying on wild populations to feed or replenish the cultivated species. Some mariculture practices, although they do not compromise future harvests, may impact the delivery of other goals through habitat destruction and accidental release of non-native species. These factors do not affect the sustainability of mariculture, but their impact upon the sustainability of other goals is captured as pressures when assessing such goals.

Dr. Andrew Rosenberg

Global Sub-Goal Score

What is This?

Likely Future State

16

*The estimate of a goals likely near-term future status is a function of four dimensions: Status, Trend, Pressure, and Resilience.

What Does This Score Mean?

The reference point for mariculture is the amount of fish and seafood produced per kilometer of eligible coastline in the most productive country which, at the time of study, was China. The score for each country indicates how close its current yield is to that reference point. A high score can mean that a country is sustainably harvesting as close to the maximum amount of farmed fish and seafood as possible based on its own potential. A low score can indicate one of two things that fish and seafood is being farmed in an unsustainable manner or that countries are not maximizing the potential to farm fish and seafood in their marine territory.

Current Score
The current score of 10 indicates that most countries are not sustainably producing the amounts of farmed fish and seafood that they potentially could. However, it is important to note that the reference point is likely too high for most countries, due the fact that all near-shore habitat was included as "potentially suitable for mariculture". In reality, depending on the type of species cultivated, there are certain habitat requirements, but to predict them would require high resolution spatial information on habitat, currents, productivity, etc. that are not available at the global scale.

,
N/A 0 10 20 30 40 50 60

70

80

90

Download Infographic

How Is It Measured?
Present Status
Present Status is a goal's current value (based on the most recent available data) compared to a reference point.

EACH GOAL IS EVALUATED ON THE BASIS OF FOUR DIMENSIONS.

Trend
Trend is the average percent change in the present status for the most recent 5 years of data.

Pressures
Pressures are the sum of the ecological and social pressures that negatively affect scores for a goal.

Resilience
Resilience is the sum of the ecological factors and social initiatives (policies, laws, etc) that can positively affect scores for a goal by reducing or eliminating pressures.

eliminating pressures.

Pressures
Chemical Pollution

Pressures are human-caused stressors that influence both ecological and social systems, negatively affecting the ability of a goal to deliver its benefits to people.

Nutrient Pollution

Social Pressure

Status
Mariculture Yield

Status refers to the current value of a goal relative to its goal-specific reference point. The reference point is the best condition for a goal that can reasonably be achieved; it is a target to aim for when taking actions to improve ocean health.

Resilience
CBD Water

Resilience refers to the social, institutional, and ecological factors that positively affect the ability of a goal to deliver its benefits to people.

CBD Mariculture

Mariculture Regulations

Quality Of Governance

References
FAO The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture. 2010 Trujilo, Pablo. 2007.

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