ICYMI
87% of Global Tuna Catch Comes from Stocks at Healthy Levels
Of the total commercial tuna catch worldwide, about 87% comes from stocks at “healthy” levels of abundance, according to the March 2025 ISSF Status of the Stocks report, and that percentage is similar to findings shared in the previous November 2024 report. Overfished stocks account for 2% of the total catch—down eight percentage points from the last report. The percentage of the catch that came from stocks at an intermediate level of abundance is 10%—an eight-percentage-point increase from November 2024 findings.
ISSF produces other reports that are complementary to the Status of the Stocks report and are published as part of the our technical report series.
- Stock Assessment 101: Current Practice for Tuna Stocks gives a simple introduction to concepts and terms such as F, FMSY, SSBMSY, Recruitment, etc., which are encountered numerous times in this report. Many terms are also defined in the ISSF Glossary.
- Tuna Fisheries’ Impacts on Non-Tuna Species and Other Environmental Aspects: 2025 Update reviews some of the main environmental impacts, particularly bycatch, caused by different types of tuna fishing methods.
Additional related resources are available:
- The Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) page of ISSF’s website provides additional information about the RFMOs: How they are structured, who are their members, how they obtain their scientific advice, how are decisions made, and what ISSF’s main advocacy asks are for each one.
- Our MSC tuna fisheries list shows tuna fisheries worldwide that either have been certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) or are currently undergoing a full assessment to become certified. The list is updated quarterly.
- The tuna FIPs list shows publicly listed tuna fishery improvement projects (FIPs) that are third-party verified. The list is updated quarterly.
Featured Tool
Interactive Stock Status & Catch Tool
Our interactive tool allows you to visualize current and historical data from ISSF’s Status of the Stocks report. The tool has three tabs — one for visualizing tuna stock health since 2011, another for visualizing the current tuna catch by fishing method, and a third with catch trends by fishing method since 1950.
