More U.S.-Caught Pacific Bluefin Tuna to Hit U.S. Markets Next Year

Pacific bluefin tuna swim underwater. Photo: Adobe Stock via NOAA Fisheries.

Increased catch limits culminate a decade-long international effort to rebuild the once-imperiled species.

Commercial Pacific bluefin tuna vessels in the United States can harvest almost 80% more fish in 2025-26 after a regional fishery management organization, the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, increased catch limits during a meeting in Panama in September.

This decision came three months after a stock assessment by the International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species in the North Pacific Ocean found the Pacific bluefin tuna stock to be rebuilt—and a decade ahead of schedule.

U.S. fishermen harvest Pacific bluefin tuna using hook-and-line, purse seine and drift gillnet gear and land their catch mainly in Southern California ports. Additionally, increases in commercial catch limits are expected to benefit recreational anglers who also catch Pacific bluefin off Southern California, as the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission resolution that increased commercial catches also called for consistent management of sport fishing.

In 2022, U.S. commercial fishers harvested 368 metric tons, or more than 800,000 pounds, of Pacific bluefin tuna, and earned more than $2.2 million for the catch. The two-year catch limit for 2025-26 is increasing almost 80%, to 1,822 metric tons from 1,017 in 2023-24.

This means the U.S. fleet can bring more Pacific bluefin tuna to the docks and seafood markets, which would be a welcome change for captains, crew and seafood distributors after more than a decade of belt tightening in the fishery.

“We rebuilt the stock as a result of stringent management measures put in place on both sides of the Pacific, and the effort was not just thanks to scientists and fishery managers,” said Ryan Wulff, assistant regional administrator for NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region and Alternate U.S. Commissioner to the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. “We have to acknowledge the efforts the fishing industry has taken to ensure harvests remain sustainable.”

“The rebuilding of the Pacific bluefin stock is not only a success from a biological perspective but is also a success for the fishing communities and consumers, leading to greater economic opportunity and more U.S. seafood available for U.S. plates,” Wulff said.

Decades of overfishing depressed the abundance of Pacific bluefin tuna to historically low levels from 2009 to 2012. This precipitous decline sparked international steps to drastically reduce fishing across the Pacific, giving the commercially prized species a chance to stabilize and rebuild. That led to rebuilding the population a decade ahead of schedule.

The next challenge for the industry is to rebuild markets—specifically those within the U.S.

A subset of Pacific bluefin tuna migrate across the Pacific Ocean to feed off the West Coast of Mexico and North America, returning to the waters near Japan to spawn. Mexico and Japan harvest the most bluefin, with commercial and recreational fishing in the United States taking about 10% of the annual harvest of the species. NOAA Fisheries map, adapted from Bayliff 1980.

Many Countries, One Stock

Pacific bluefin tuna are a highly migratory species, whose habitat mostly spans the temperate waters of the North Pacific, from East Asia to the North American West Coast. The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission manages catches of tuna and tuna-like species in the eastern Pacific.

The U.S. and Mexico are the only countries in the eastern Pacific that harvest Pacific bluefin. The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission manages Pacific bluefin tuna harvests throughout the rest of the Pacific.

Both organizations adopt bluefin tuna management and conservation measures by consensus, based on science produced by the seven-country International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species in the North Pacific Ocean.

The international coordination encompasses the migration pattern of Pacific bluefin across a 6,000-mile swath of the North Pacific and spans their spawning grounds in the Sea of Japan to the abundant feeding grounds off Southern California and Baja California, Mexico.

Another subset of Pacific bluefin also travel south from the spawning ground to waters between Australia and New Zealand.

Japan and Mexico catch the most bluefin across its range. Mexico has a highly developed fishery that uses net pens to raise 1- to 2-year-old fish in captivity until they’re ready for harvest. The commission set new catch limits for the Western Pacific at its November meeting.

Rebuilt Stock, Rebuilding Markets

Large highly migratory species such as swordfish, Pacific bluefin and other tunas have rebounded in the past decade through effective fishery management and international cooperation. Consumer sentiment and domestic markets are still adjusting to these successes.

“Fishermen are working to rebuild relationships with processors, restaurants and other customers,” NOAA Fisheries Senior Advisor for Seafood Strategy Michael Rubino said. “They will, in their turn, have to rebuild and potentially educate their consumer base, often consisting of environmentally minded consumers who may be unaware of bluefin’s improved status.”

“Increased catch limits,” he added, “represent market opportunity, but we also have to maintain, and in some cases, rebuild working waterfront infrastructure to land and process increased catches.”

NOAA’s National Seafood Strategy includes actions aimed at strengthening the resilience of the sector and the communities that depend on fishing businesses.

The strategy guides NOAA Fisheries staff in working with fishermen and seafood producers around the country to address challenges posed by climate change, market disruptions such as those caused by the coronavirus pandemic, international trade and the need to modernize and recapitalize fishing vessels, processing plants and other U.S. seafood infrastructure.