Australian Marine Conservation Society

www.sustainableseafood.org.au

Find your seafood and read our sustainability assessments here.
The alphabetical listing makes it easy to navigate the online guide – click on a letter below to find your fish. Alternatively, you can also search by typing the name opposite, or using the drop down menus to search for sustainability classification or catch method.
Read Before You Get Started for more information on the assessments

Tuna (Albacore)
Wild

Other common names: Also called Tuna

Notes:

Predominantly longline caught; Albacore not considered overfished off east or west coasts of Australia; bycatch of threatened species including sharks and turtles is of significant concern; Australian fisheries are part of the major fishery in Indian and Pacific Oceans; also imported (see canned Tuna).

Better Choice: Troll or pole and line caught Albacore Tuna.

References: 144

Tuna (Bigeye)
Wild

Other common names: Tuna

Notes:

Predominantly longline caught; Bigeye Tuna listed as ‘vulnerable’ by IUCN; no longer considered overfished off the east coast of Australia, but there is considerable concern over localized depletions in the Coral and Tasman Seas as well as concern over the on-going high levels of fishing that could lead to overfished stocks if catch levels are not reduced; not overfished off Australia’s west coast; bycatch of sharks and turtles of significant concern; as a high level predator there are potential negative ecosystem effects of depleted Tuna populations; also imported from New Zealand and South Pacific.

References: 4, 5, 5a, 6, 326

Tuna (Southern Bluefin)
Wild

Other common names: Tuna

Notes:

Predominantly purse seine caught with minor longline catches; overfished with a severely depleted population; assessed as ‘critically endangered’ by the IUCN and threatened in NSW and VIC; Australian fishery mostly targets juveniles for fattening up in sea cage aquaculture operations; long-lived, late-maturing species that is vulnerable to fishing pressure; potential negative ecosystem effects of severe depletion of this high level predator species.

References: 97, 98, 99, 100

Tuna (Southern Bluefin) Farmed
Other common names: Also called Tuna Notes: Farmed in sea cages after wild capture; mostly caught as juveniles in the wild before being transferred to sea cages for fattening up; very poor feed conversion ratio, meaning less fish is produced than is fed to the Tuna; feed sourced from fisheries with dolphin bycatch issues. References: 108, 108a, 109, 221, 227, 327

Tuna (Yellowfin)
Wild

Other common names: Tuna

Notes:

Predominantly longline caught; no longer subject to overfishing off the Australian east coast though some concern about stock status in the wider Pacific; no longer overfished or subject to overfishing off Western Australia due to reduced catch levels across the Indian Ocean; bycatch of sharks and turtles of significant concern; as a high level predator there are potential negative ecosystem effects of depleted Tuna populations; also imported from New Zealand and South Pacific.

References: 106, 107, 326