Media release – Bob Brown Foundation, 16 October 2023

CCAMLR must protect krill urgently

Today, the Bob Brown Foundation held a protest calling for an end to krill fishing in Antarctica, at the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic and Marine Living Resources ( CCAMLR) as international delegates arrived for the opening day of the annual CCAMLR conference.

Protesters scaled the flag poles out the front of the building and hung a huge banner that read: Stop krilling Antarctica.

It comes of the back of a brand-new report from the Bob Brown Foundation entitled Krilling Antarctica, which details how Antarctic krill ends up on supermarket shelves and chemists around Australia and New Zealand.

CCAMLR is also set to discuss the possibility of raising the krill quota for the supertrawlers operating in the Antarctic wilderness.

“Earlier this year, Tanya Plibersek stated that Australia supported more restrictions on krill fishing in Antarctica. We are calling for Australia to be a Antarctic champion and call for a complete end to krill fishing in Antarctica,” said Alistair Allan, Bob Brown Foundation Antarctic and Marine Campaigner.

“Krill is the foundation of the Antarctic ecosystem. Whales, penguins and seals all rely on krill to survive. There shouldn’t be massive supertrawlers catching this keystone species.”

“Australia was integral in protecting Antarctic from the threat of mining in the 1990’s. We should be leading the way in protecting Antarctica from krill fishing. CCAMLR is set to discuss the possibility of raising the allowable catch of krill this year.”

“Our investigations revealed that one fish feed factory operated by BioMar in Tasmania is using 1200 tonnes of krill meal a year to make feed for farmed salmon. That’s 3 billion individual krill. It’s a shocking and unsustainable practice. Krill should be afforded total protection. It is the key to life in Antarctica. It should not be caught to make unnecessary products such as salmon feed, health supplements or pet food,” said Alistair Allan.