Clean Seas Tuna not worried about reduced catch 27 Oct 2009 11:01:00
Sydney - Tuesday - October 27: (RWE Australian Business News) - Clean Seas Tuna Ltd (CSS) today said worldwide cuts to Bluefin Tuna wild catch quotas should have a positive impact on the emerging Bluefin Tuna aquaculture industry thematics.
Federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Tony Burke yesterday confirmed the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna had agreed to a net 20pc cut in worldwide quota for Southern Bluefin Tuna from 11,810 tonnes to 9949 tonnes over 2010 and 2011.
Australia's share of the worldwide quota is to fall 23.4pc from 5265 tonnes to 4015 tonnes.
Clean Seas Tuna has previously advised that substantial cuts are also being recommended by an increasing number of EU countries for Northern Bluefin Tuna in the Mediterranean with some countries recommending total closure of the fishery to allow stocks to recover.
The company owns two tonnes of SBT quota, which is utilised for recruitment of replacement broodstock for its 10-year rolling SBT aquaculture broodstock program.
The annual catch from this quota will be reduced to some 1.5 tonnes, which should still be sufficient for the company's program.
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As part of its fish husbandry and inventory control protocols, the company's policy is to grade and count its Yellowtail Kingfish inventory annually.
Grading started in September and will be completed by November.
Results to date indicate a higher-than-anticipated and unreported mortality rate, which if extrapolated over all Kingfish inventory, could result in a negative earnings impact of around $500,000 to $1m.
Measures have been taken to strengthen controls and reporting of juvenile mortalities. The net impact of inventory losses will be included in the half-yearly results to December 31.
Clean Seas Tuna has confirmed it is on budget to redress its overstocked position as at June 30, and that production and sales are expected to return to balance by the end of the current financial year.
The company's previously announced value-added product range is expected to assist in the rebalancing of its inventory holding.
CSS Price at posting:
21.3¢ Sentiment: LT Buy Disclosure: Held
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