Enough sardine supply during the holidays

MANILA, Philippines — There will be enough supply of sardines for the holidays even with the start of the closed fishing season, the Canned Sardines Association of the Philippines (CSAP) assured the public yesterday.

CSAP executive director Francisco Buencamino said manufacturers are prepared for the three-month fishing ban on sardines which will last until February 2025.

“The closed fishing season is an old practice even before the pandemic so we have already been prepared for this eventuality,” Buencamino said.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources spokesman Nazario Briguera said that BFAR implements the closed fishing season to allow the repopulation of various fisheries stocks.

The fishing ban covering sardines in Zamboanga Peninsula as well as small pelagic fish in the Visayan Sea will start on Nov. 15

Meanwhile, the fishing ban on round scad or galunggong in Palawan started on Nov. 1.