Tuning in on the Global Tuna Value Chain. A Political Ecology Perspective on Food Loss and Waste

Abstract

This master thesis explores the food loss and waste of tuna resources in the global tuna value chains. The aim is to understand how the global system of governance affects the access to and utilisation of tuna resources and by-products. By exploring the processing stage of the industrial value chains of tuna, the food loss and waste in this section is scrutinised. A desk-based approach was necessitated by the covid-19 pandemic, and secondary sources were employed to acquire quantitative and qualitative data. The methodological approach was based on case studies for the global tuna value chain with document analysis and systematic literature reviews. An illustrative case study of the tuna processing industry was used to contextualise the global relations of the tuna value chain in a Global South context. The major findings show that the tuna by-products are to a great degree utilised for fish feed. The Western trade regime governs the global value chains of tuna through standards and regulations on products exported to the EU and US, which restricts the use of by-products for human consumption. The globalised nature of the value chain limits the access to and utilisation of tuna resources for food insecure populations. An international network of actors control the tuna resources through different power mechanisms. The discourses that shape and are being shaped by the global tuna value chains are based on Western narratives, which do not apply well to Global South contexts.