WWF hails North Sea cod conservation program success

From The Independent:

North Sea cod, once on the brink as a result of decades of over-fishing, has now recovered to an extent that the public should start eating it again with enthusiasm, one of the world's biggest wildlife charities has said.

In a rare wildlife conservation success story, the charity WWF said the fish renowned for its flaky white chunks was being caught sustainably off the shallow cold waters of north and eastern Britain for the first time in a decade. Stocks of the fish have risen by 52 per cent from their historic low four years ago because of a combination of cuts in landing quotas, and conservation techniques which have reduced the number tossed back dead into the sea.

As a result, the EU has increased the British quota for North Sea cod by 16 per cent this year, from 11,216 tonnes to 13,000. Although stocks are still low by historic standards, the recovery could prompt British supermarkets to start stocking North Sea cod again. Most cod in grocery chains and fish and chip shops at present comes from Iceland and the Barents Sea.