To sustain production and double the income of stakeholders, Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar pressed for the integration of results gathered through years of research, which aims to uplift and further improve the local tuna industry.

During a meeting with the members of the SOCCSKSARGEN Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries, Inc (SFFAII) on February 8, the Secretary stressed that the results of the studies must be projected and institutionalized in the next 10-20 years.

The Secretary and the SFFAII members also discussed challenges faced by the industry players such as rising cost of operation and high shipping rate for domestic cargo. Other concerns discussed included the lack and/or non-enforcement of laws for unregulated fishing in municipal waters, pending regulations in support of sustainable fishing, increasing demands for certified fish products, port rehabilitation, and strategies to increase the production of tuna.

“The tuna industry should be given attention as contributes greatly to the total gross value-adding of the fishery sector,” Dar said.

He reiterated that laws on illegal and unregulated fishing in municipal waters should be properly implemented.

“The laws are there, and therefore must be carried out,” Dar said.

He directed the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) to limit and refrain from distributing small boats that can only go to as far as 10-kilometer municipal waters.

“Why not give bigger boats to a group that can cover 20 kilometers,” Dar suggested.

He also urged DA-BFAR to start distributing boats with cold storage equipment to fisherfolk cooperatives stressing that the Department does not encourage individual fishing. ### (Kristel Merle, DA-AFID)