Once again the yellow flag is up on the beach. It’s a calm day on the Balearic island, the water is turquoise and crystal clear. Some tourists are sunbathing, but nobody dares to go for a swim. Jellyfish alert. Since June 2006 more than 10.000 people in Catalunya have been injured by jellyfish… The jellyfish menace is a direct cause of overfishing and rising water temperature - a symptom of the ecological imbalance in the mediterranean. The Bluefin tuna is the natural enemy of the jellyfish and a popular everyday fish in the world market.

The red meat ist not only sought after in Japan, to be eaten as sashimi or Sushi, but has become more than a global trend. Approximately 90% of the entire catch of Bluefin tuna is meant for the export to Japan, to satisfy the countries appetite. The greed of gain of the EU-sanctioned fleets leads to inconsiderate overfishing - in some places up to 50 % more than agreed upon. The prices for Bluefin tuna are skyrocketing - These days a kilo costs 80 € at the worlds biggest fishmarket in Tokyo. The Tsukiji-fishmarket is where the global market value is priced for the treasured frozen goods, from where most of the tuna suitable for Sushi is reimported to Europe and America.

In the waters offshore the Baleares, the most important breeding area of the Bluefins, there has been a dramatic decrease of 85% since 1995, the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) has announced recently. Many fishing corporations in the region therefore had to close due to lacking shoals. Some experts believe that the endangered species in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic will not be able to survive the next 20 months. WWF pleads for radical protective measures, so that the stock can recover.

Joe Borg, from the EU-fishery commission in Brussels has an order to stop catching tuna until the end of 2007. But on a long term, that wont be enough to save the Bluefin, as catching quota acts in accordance to the industry instead of science, claims Arata Izawa from WWF. A full-grown Bluefin can become up to 15 years old and 4,85 m long, but mostly young shoals are caught with a length of 20 kg. The breeding of the species is not an alternative as young tunas have to be fed with additional 20 kg of fish, especially sardines from the Pacific.

Therefore not only the existence of the tuna is endangered, but because of the aggressive raids of the gloabl fishing industry approximately 90% of all ecosystems are facing a collapse. Oceanic biologists forecast, that by 2050 the worlds oceans will be entirely exploited. The only solution is the boycott of sushi and tuna steaks, though inevitably the prices will increase, so that soon the delicacy will disappear from the worlds menues.