In recent months the U.S. fishermen that harvest the broadbill swordfish have become the targets of the well-funded Give Swordfish A Break campaign. Many swordfish - and several other open-ocean fish known collectively as highly migratory species - are harvested in offshore waters beyond the 200 mile management zones of coastal nations. As a consequence they are usually managed by international bodies. In the case of swordfish, the management authority is the International Convention for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). ICCAT is an international organization established via treaties signed by all the member nations, including the U.S. The organizations behind the Give Swordfish A Break campaign don't agree with the way ICCAT is managing the swordfish fishery. Not able or willing to work for change within a well-established, science-based mangement system, they are trying to force change by organizing a U.S. consumer boycott. 

Unfortunately this boycott, while having little or no effect on the nations or fishermen who are not complying with existing regulations, will greatly impact the U.S. swordfish fleet and the coastal communities that serve as their home ports. And the U.S. swordfish fleet, which is made up of under 200 boats generally operated as family businesses, is in full compliance with all of the appropriate federal and international regulations.

The links below will take you to a series of articles that examine the swordfish issue.
 
 

Note: The recreational angling groups that refer to themselves as "conservation" organizations are also heavily involved in this campaign. For a Mississippi journalist's impression of their brand of "conservation" follow the above link.
 

Link to the site of the commercial longliner's trade association

	An article from the Dallas Observer which dissects the swordfish boycott and puts it in a much more realistic perspective.
	An article from the St. Petersburg (Florida) Times which addresses SeaWeb's motivations for "saving swordfish" and points out some of the hypocrisy this boycott is laced with.
	A NJ FishNet that looks at the swordfish boycott and provides some background information on the organizations that are supporting it.
	A profile of Linda Greenlaw, a swordfish longline fleet high liner and one of the people featured in Sebastian Junger's best selling book The Perfect Storm.
	A review of The Perfect Storm, a book  detailing the last days of the ill-fated swordfish longliner Andrea Gail and her crew.
	A section of a FishNet that compares commercial and recreational hook and line fishing off the East coast of the United States.
	An article from the Philadelphia Inquirer describing a debate between the supporters of the Pew/SeaWeb consumer boycott and a chef who took the trouble to determine what the actual situation was regartding U.S. fishermen.
	A follow-up column from the Philadelphia Inquirer describing Chef Jack McDavid's position in taking on the Pew Trust financed swordfish boycott.
	What you will be missing - Part I: Marinated Swordfish Acapulco Style from The Nouvelle Cuisine Cookbook by Armand Aulicino.
	What you will be missing - Part II: UskuKilic Sis (skewered swordfish) from Turkish Cookery by Inci Kut.
	What you will be missing - Part III: Charcoal - Broiled Swordfish from The Martha's Vineyard Cookbook by Louise Tate King and Jean Stewart Wexlar.
	Link to National Marine Fisheries Service swordfish management page.
	Link to National Fisheries Institute swordfish campaign page.
	From the article on a JAMA study: "Sea bass? Flounder? Eat up. There's evidence, scientists said Tuesday, that ocean fish pose little risk, even to children and pregnant women, from low levels of mercury they pick up in the aquatic food chain."
	An article from the Boston Globe food section on the swordfish boycott that covers both sides in what is becoming an increasingly controversial Pew backed initiative.
	A page detailing waste in some big game fishing tournaments and including links to other tournament fishing information and catch and release mortality.
	A page that describes a line of "T" and sweatshirts that feature photos of "big game" fish wasted in sportsfishing tournaments.