21 B u s i n e s s p l a n | F i s h m e a l a n d f i s h o i l p r o d u c t i o n Fish resources MENHADEN STOCK The overall population of Atlantic menhaden has generally increased in recent years, but some parts of the population are decreasing for reasons that are not yet understood. Managers in the region are focused on better understanding the population and ecosystem dynamics. In contrast, Gulf menhaden have fluctuated without a consistent trend. Data on Gulf menhaden have been collected for many years. The stock was first formally assessed in 1982, and updated every five years thereafter. In the end of 2013 the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission (GSMFC) has completed a comprehensive, three-year stock assessment of the Gulf menhaden population and found that the stock is healthy and sustainable at current harvest levels. Since the completion of the assessment, the GSMFC has approved the adoption of new reference points, which were put in place to measure the rate of harvest and to ensure the continued health of the population. The reference points were set to be equivalent to the total harvest at fishing mortality levels of 35% for the spawning potential ratio (SPR) and 30% SPR, respectively. The same are results of Atlantic Menhaden benchmark. The revised reference points are based on historical performance of the population during the time frame 19602012, a period during which the Technical Committee considers the population to have been sustainably fished. Fishing mortality rates have hovered Figure 20. Atlantic Menhaden Fishing Mortality around the revised overfishing target (38%) through the 1990s. In 2003, fishing mortality dropped below the revised target and was estimated to be 22% in 2013 (the latest year in the assessment). That means that fishing mortality has been decreasing throughout the history of the fishery, and is now 42% below the target. This indicates that current Gulf menhaden are more than able to sustain themselves and that current levels of harvest in the commercial fishery are not harmful to the population Fishery managers also do not consider Gulf menhaden to be overfished. The main management in the Gulf of Mexico has been on addressing the economic consequences of the consolidation of the industry (IFFO 2015). Additional Gulf Menhaden landing potential. According to NOAA Forecast for the 2014 Gulf and Atlantic Menhaden Purse-Seine Fisheries, Gulf Menhaden coastwise age-2 fish (73%) outnumbered age-1 fish (25%) by a wide margin (see Table 6).
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