Although increasing attention is being given to rights-based fishing as a means of controlling capacity and promoting economic and biological sustainability of our fisheries, the focus has been almost exclusively on vessels. However, that is not the case in the real world. Fishermen are linked in a symbiotic, albeit occasionally antagonistic, relationship with seafood processors. In order to achieve the benefits of sustainability via rights-based fishing, attention must be paid to the rights and responsibilities of processors as well as fishermen.
Processors provide the mechanism whereby fishermen convert their catch to money.
Processors make extensive capital investments to provide this service and to generate profits for their companies. As harvesting capacity has increased over the years, so has processing capacity. By reducing harvesting capacity in a controlled fashion without a concomitant controlled reduction in processing capacity, an economic imbalance is created that has a domino effect on both harvesting and processing sectors. To give a real world example, a fisherman may be licensed and have gear for several fisheries, or may fish exclusively for one species. A processor must have the capability to handle all of the different species that will be landed, which means having workers and equipment available to match the total catch of all species.