As Christmas rolls around for another year, there has never 
been a better time to add fresh Australian seafood to your Christmas day menu, including wild caught Australian prawns from the Northern Prawn Fishery (NPF).
Not only does seafood from Commonwealth managed fisheries taste great, but you can also have confidence that it is coming from a sustainably managed fishery.
The NPF is just one of the many Commonwealth fisheries actively working to continuously reduce bycatch.
In 2015, the Northern Prawn Fishery Industry association (NPFI) committed to reducing bycatch by 30 per cent by July 2018, pledging $20 000 to the development of effective bycatch reduction devices (BRD). NPFI selected Kon’s Covered Fisheye, a BRD developed by Kon Triantopoulos, which was designed and trialled for the NPF tiger prawn season.
AFMA, with technical support from CSIRO, together with industry trialled the device by measuring the catch variation between nets with and without the device. Underwater camera equipment was also deployed to analyse how different species were interacting with the device.
AFMA’s CEO Dr James Findlay said that it was great to see industry using the latest science and innovation to improve fisheries operations.
“There is a genuine commitment from industry to improve fishing operations as it seeks to put local, Australian seafood on our tables,” Dr Findlay said.
“This is great news for Australian prawn lovers.
“In fact in many of Australia’s Commonwealth managed fisheries, we’ve seen industry trial new technology this year to improve their operations.
“So as you start to plan your Christmas menu this year, why not make a sustainable choice and add seafood, including tiger prawns, from a Commonwealth managed fishery.”
Preliminary results from the trial indicate a reduction in bycatch of 30-35 per cent with prawn loss being less than one per cent. This is a great success for everyone involved and another example of strong collaboration between industry and AFMA.
So, whether you’re thinking prawn cocktails for entrée or prawns on the barbecue to compliment your main, you can tuck into a delicious serving of Australian wild caught prawns knowing that they are also sustainable.
For more information on bycatch reduction in Commonwealth fisheries, visit afma.gov.au.
ENDS