New Study in Nature: Small-Scale Fisheries Essential to Global Nutrition, Livelihoods

Small-scale fisheries play a significant but overlooked role in global fisheries production and are key to addressing hunger and malnutrition while supporting livelihoods around the world, according to new research featured in Nature. Published online on Jan. 15 by an international team of scientists, including WorldFish experts, the study is the first to rigorously quantify how marine and inland small-scale fisheries contribute to aquatic harvests and nutritional and socioeconomic security on a global scale.

Although definitions vary, small-scale fisheries generally comprise households or communities, mostly in lower- to middle-income countries, that use lower-tech, more labor-intensive fishing techniques to fish for food or to earn money compared to large-scale fisheries. Historically, decision-makers have marginalized small-scale fisheries in resource management plans, food system analyses, and agricultural, nutritional and development policies, for various reasons. For example, census data usually groups small-scale fishers with agricultural workers.

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