Ships Without License Plates: The Dark Fleet Behind Fishmeal

In a single day in March 2024, Gambian navy officers arrested eight industrial trawlers. Seven were fishing in waters reserved for local canoes, four were using illegal nets, and every one had switched off its tracking beacon. That one patrol shows a problem playing out across the global ocean. About three in four industrial fishing vessels are not publicly tracked, and many of the boats supplying the fishmeal that feeds farmed fish are among the hardest to see.

In this episode of How to Protect the Ocean, Andrew Lewin follows the boats that catch the fish behind fish feed. He covers how vessels go dark, repaint and reflag, and how transshipment lets them stay at sea for months. He looks at fishmeal-linked boats working inside marine protected areas and the crew members who pay the price when help is weeks away. He also tells the story of Viktor Boshko, a deckhand who spent nearly two weeks at sea with a crushed arm before reaching a hospital.

The episode also covers what's working. The Gambia partnered with Sea Shepherd to put armed patrols at sea. Indonesia became the first country to publish its fleet's tracking data on a free public map. Satellite radar now detects boats with their beacons off, and port controls are closing doors on illegal catch. Andrew ends with a simple action you can take tonight from your phone.

Takeaways

• About 75% of the world's industrial fishing vessels are not publicly tracked, according to a 2024 Nature study.
• Fewer than 30% of the 2,400+ ships tied to fishmeal production have public location data, and fewer than 10% are in the UN's global vessel record.
• Without a permanent ID, a boat caught fishing illegally can repaint, rename and reflag, then return to fishing.
• Transshipment lets fishing boats offload at sea and stay out for months, out of reach of inspectors and medical help.
• Public tracking data, satellite radar and port controls are making it harder for dark vessels to hide.
• You can explore the Global Fishing Watch map for free and see who is fishing near your coast.