The Ministry of Production announced that on 19 and 20 October, 30 boats will be part of "Operation Eureka" which will assess whether there will be a second season of anchovy fishing this year.

A second fishing season matters to both local fishing companies, and to the global fishmeal market, as Peru is the world's leading exporter.

A scientific expedition from the Instituto del Mar del Peru (IMARPE) in September showed that there was not enough anchovy biomass in the northern central zone of the Peruvian coast, but it was considered that the results were inconclusive due to climatic anomalies.

To obtain a more accurate result, IMARPE will conduct its latest exploratory fishing operation, with vessels fishing only to assess the anchovy size.

This will enable them to determine if the anchovy is in the juvenile stage, in which case it cannot be fished industrially. Only if adult anchovies are found that have already reproduced, will a second fishing season will be permitted.

Source: FIS.com. Read the article here.