What a fantastic launch for the ‘Be a Fisherman’s Friend’ campaign! It was a winning combination of great sunny weather, a wonderful 6ft mackerel costume (accompanied by a fishmonger), fish shaped cards and the fact that we campaigned at the popular Feeding the 5,000 event on College Green. As a result we netted 501 signatures on the fish tails of the fish cards – what a brilliant ‘catch of the day’!
The cards will be kept for later in the campaign when they will be handed over to Ashley Fox, our local Member of the European Parliament (MEP), before he discusses and votes on the reform of the hugely unfair and wasteful Common Fishing Policy (CFP). It is hoped that MEPs will take full notice of the groundswell of public opinion when determining the reform of the CFP.
Our European fishing industry is in crisis and we have a once in a decade chance to change things for the better. The European Commision predicts that if the current situation of overfishing continues only 8 fish stocks out of 136 will be viable by 2022. The current policy favours the big industrial fleets and threatens the livelihoods of the small scale fishermen who look after our seas and fish responsibly. So our campaign aims to change this and get a fair catch for sustainable fisherman. See the short video below to hear the stories and views of the fishermen who are desperate to see change.
The quota system, for example, is a travesty when you consider that smaller fishing boats that tend to have a lesser environmental impact make up 75% of the UK’s fishing fleet, yet they are only allocated a total quota of 4%.
Our campaign also demands the banning of discards. At present the CFP forces fleets to throw away overboard tonnes of dead or dying fish once quotas have been met. This can be between 40% and 60% of their catch and so this sheer waste of marine life cannot be allowed to continue.
It was with this wastefulness in mind that we campaigned alongside the Feeding The 5,000 event on College Green in Bristol. This event was making its regional debut in partnership with FareShare South West and supported by a host of local businesses and charities. It featured celebrity and local chefs, speakers, live music and above all a fantastic lunch made from food that would normally have been wasted by the food industry. Read about the event here. The atmosphere was great and with the message of increasing sustainability people were able to connect with our campaign.
The ‘Be a Fisherman’s Friend’ campaign is officially launched on Saturday 26th May so we plan to be out and about getting more public support. Big thanks to Carol for organising the day, and also to volunteers Adam, Fi, Loz, Mark, Natasha, Richard B and Richard L who reeled in members of the public to sign up to become fisherman’s friends. Some pictures can be found on our Flickr site - click here.
NAME OUR MACKEREL It was true to say that our 6 foot mackerel costume was a big hit with the public – but it is clear that our fishy friend needs a name. So we are looking for suitable suggestions. Please use the comment box below or go to our Facebook page to leave a suggestion and later on we will organise a public vote from five of the favourite names.
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