New Reuters Documentary Featuring GOED, FAO and Fishery Experts Highlights Importance of Peruvian Anchovy Fishery for Human Health, Global Food Security

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Oct 15, 2024, 09:48 ET

SALT LAKE CITY, Oct. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Who knew that the Peruvian anchoveta, commonly known as anchovy, is a key resource in guaranteeing global food security? A new documentary from Reuters' Ocean Titans series: "Leading the Way: How SNP is Advancing Anchoveta Management in Peru," explains how the Peruvian anchovy fishery, the fourth largest in the world, is able to sustainably provide nutrient-rich anchovies with minimal impact on ocean biodiversity.

Anchovies serve as the main component in fish oil supplements and fish feed and are a rich source of EPA and DHA omega-3s, nutrients well known for benefiting heart, brain, eye and maternal/prenatal health.

"The Peruvian anchovy fishery is the largest in the world providing fish oil, which contains EPA and DHA omega-3s," Ellen Schutt, managing director of the Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3s (GOED), comments in the video. "Because it is so important for humans to get EPA and DHA, Peru plays a vital role in supporting the health of the world's population."

Sponsored by the National Fisheries Society (SNP) of Peru, the Ocean Titans documentary also features insights from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and a fisheries expert at the University of Washington.

According to FAO director of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division Manuel Barange: "At FAO, we estimate that 600 million people depend on fishing and aquaculture for their livelihood," adding that fishing has a much lower environmental impact than other food sources like livestock production.

The environmental impact of the fishery like this one is often under scrutiny. The documentary highlights the sustainability measures implemented in the anchoveta fishery, which represent an investment of over US$500 million in technological innovations at processing plants to minimize environmental impacts. Marine biologist Ray Hilborn, professor at the School of Aquatic and Fisheries Sciences at the University of Washington, commented that the model of anchovy fishing in Peru — which includes research cruises to estimate the biomass of the resource, the establishment of mandatory quotas and self-closure of the fishery — should be imitated in other fisheries around the world.

Watch the documentary here.

About GOED: The Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3s is a not-for-profit trade association whose mission is to use science-based information to promote consumption of quality EPA & DHA from all sources for a positive impact on public health.

SOURCE GOED Omega-3