Jun 08 (Kyodo) - The stock of large Pacific bluefin tuna, a popular fish for sushi but for which concerns remain over its depletion, has been projected to meet an international recovery target of around 40,000 tons by 2024, sources familiar with the matter said Sunday.
The projection was made by the International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-like Species in the North Pacific Ocean, which earlier this year assessed the probability of achieving the target as 100 percent, according to the sources.
It could set the stage for quota expansion discussions, proposed by Japan, at an international conference usually held in summer.
Japan has been seeking an expansion of catch quota at meetings of the Northern Committee of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission.
At last year's meeting, parties including the United States opposed the proposed quota expansion, saying the stock of the tuna has not recovered enough.
After declining steadily from 1995 to the historical low level of 11,000 tons in 2010, the stock of tuna with breeding capability appears to have started recovering -- an estimated 25,000 tons in 2016 and 28,000 tons in 2018.
