Mario Cabrera backs the fishing sector, rejects purse‑seine and tuna ranching in the islands

“This type of practice is incompatible with the model that the Canary artisanal fleet has wanted to maintain also for reasons of identity.”

The deputy of the Canarian Nationalist Group (CCa), Mario Cabrera González, addressed the Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food Sovereignty Commission of the Parliament of the Canary Islands to defend the archipelago’s fishing sector against the possible implementation of a purse‑seine project for breeding and fattening tunas, approved by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) in November 2025.

“They will have us there,” Cabrera said, expressing his backing for the sector.

The president of the Regional Federation of Cofradías, Lorenzo Brito Castro, and the president of the Provincial Federation of Las Palmas, Gabriel Jiménez Cruz, warned that the pilot project could have a negative impact on Canary artisanal fishing.

During their statements they highlighted several issues that could seriously affect the traditional fishing sector:

• In regions such as the Mediterranean and the Basque Country, where similar fishing methods are used, the presence of large‑scale industries has limited low‑impact fishing activities.
• Both purse‑seine and bottom‑trawl fishing—already prohibited in the Canary Islands—have pushed species like the bigeye tuna and the Atlantic bluefin tuna to the brink of extinction.
• These industrial gears are considered aggressive toward the environment, contrasting with the traditional Canary model that emphasizes respect for the sea, conservation, and sustainable resource use.

Mario Cabrera backed the speakers and questioned why the decision had been taken behind the back of the Canary fishing sector. He argued that the move serves a particular business interest and urged fishermen to remember that they have the support of:

• The Canarian Nationalist Group,
• The unanimous backing of the various entities that compose the Canary fishing sector,
• Institutional support from the councils of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, and
• The Government of the Canary Islands.

Cabrera stressed that the issue is not a refusal to explore other fishing models or to respect alternative methods; rather, the Canary Islands have consciously chosen not to adopt these industrial gears in order to preserve traditional fishing. Regarding purse‑seine fishing he reiterated:

“This type of practice is incompatible with the model that the Canary artisanal fleet has wanted to maintain the traditional modality also for reasons of identity.”

The Majorcan deputy also highlighted the sector’s generational renewal problem, stating:

“The sector must be protected to maintain traditional gears.”

Finally, Cabrera underscored the sector’s commitment to environmental protection, recalling its stance against:

• Oil prospecting,
• Agreements with Morocco, and any threat to marine sustainability,

and he rejected the installation of offshore wind farms—such as those planned for the El Banquete area in Morro Jable, a zone of high biodiversity and great fishing value—as well as the extraction of rare earths, due to their potential contaminating impact on the sea.