Cabinet decision on a bill to prevent the distribution of marine products that may be poached, such as abalone October 30, 10:13
Since poaching of abalone and sea cucumber is endless, a bill was passed by the Cabinet on the 30th, which requires fishermen and distributors to report to the national government and keep records of transactions.
It has been pointed out that poaching of marine products such as abalone and sea cucumber continues to increase, leading to a decrease in resources and putting pressure on the management of fishermen.
For this reason, the bill requires fishermen and organizations to notify the national and prefectural governments in advance when fishing for marine products that may be poached, and a dedicated number will be notified at that time.
Fisheries and organizations give buyers, etc. a "fishing number" that includes the date on which the marine product was sold.
In the subsequent distribution and processing stages, each trader is required to record and store the date and quantity of the transaction in addition to this "catch number".
Furthermore, exports of such marine products are subject to a certificate issued by the country, and when importing from overseas, a certificate from the government agency of that country is required.
The target marine products will be discussed in a committee of experts and included in the ministerial ordinance, and the government is aiming to pass a bill in the current Diet.
Strengthen checks at the bill distribution stage
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the number of poaching cases such as abalone and sea cucumber arrested by the Japan Coast Guard and police in 2018 two years ago has reached 1485. Of these, poaching by non-fishers such as gangsters accounts for nearly 80% of the total, a rapid increase of 5.5 times compared to 20 years ago.
Along with this, the catch of abalone last year decreased to less than 40% in 1998, and sea cucumber also decreased to about 60% in 2006, and there is concern that it will reduce resources and put pressure on the management of fishermen. It has been.
The government has amended the Otoshi Fishery Law and has strengthened its response by establishing a new system that imposes a fine of up to 3 years in prison or up to 30 million yen for poaching abalone and sea cucumbers. Once on the market, it is indistinguishable whether it was poached or not, so the bill decided to strengthen checks at the distribution stage.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the target marine products are
▽ abalone and sea cucumber in Japan, and
▽ squid and saury, for which cases of illegal fishing have been reported overseas, are assumed.
On the other hand, it will be a new burden for fishermen and distributors, so the government wants to promote the digitization of records to establish the system.