The FAO Fisheries Technical Guidelines for Responsible Fishing support the implementation of the UN FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fishing, agreed in 1995.

Specifically, they underscored the flaws in a problematic technical concept called ‘Maximum Sustainable Yield’ or MSY that has and does dominate global fisheries management.  In essence, the calculations underlying MSY carry too great a risk that the ‘maximum sustainable yield’ isn’t in fact sustainable. Nor does it take account of the needs of other stocks and other wildlife.

They also set out a simple five point assessment scheme (worse to best practice) to overcome these problems, building on the FAO Code of Conduct concept of negative limits to be avoided and positive targets to be reached. Our five point evaluation of the environmental impact of fisheries is based on the approach outlined  in the Technical Guidelines.

For additional information, see Chapter and Verse