Abstract

Fish and marine animals like shrimp (we’ll call them all fish here) are an important food source for many people in the world. They provide vital nutrients to people with poor diets.

There are various large and small-scale fisheries involved. Some people sell their catches, while others catch fish for their families to eat. In order to know the total amount caught, we need accurate data on all fisheries catches.   

We carried out a data collection project to calculate total catches from all marine fisheries in the world from 1950 to 2010.

This made us realize that catches peaked at a much higher amount than the officially reported figures. It also showed us that they are now declining much faster than previously thought.

All fisheries need to be better monitored so that we have more accurate data. This will help us to be able to make the right decisions to protect global fish stocks.

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