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Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-NDNature food

Conflict with industrial fleets undermines the contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development in vulnerable regions.

  • Melissa R Cronin1,2
  • Elena Finkbeiner3,4
  • John Virdin5,6
  • Gabrielle Carmine5,7,8
  • Kathryn H Dalton3
  • Juno Fitzpatrick3
  • Christina C Hicks9
  • Maria Del Mar Mancha-Cisneros10
  • Xavier Basurto5,11
11 affiliations
  1. 1School for Marine Science and Technology, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, USA. [email protected].
  2. 2Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA. [email protected].
  3. 3Center for Oceans, Conservation International, Honolulu, HI, USA.
  4. 4Coastal Science & Policy Program, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA.
  5. 5Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
  6. 6Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainability, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
  7. 7Marine Geospatial Ecology Lab, Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
  8. 8The Earth Commons, Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.
  9. 9Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.
  10. 10Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA.
  11. 11Department of Environmental Social Sciences, Doerr School of Sustainability, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA.
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Abstract

Equitable and sustainable governance of small-scale fisheries (SSFs) is essential for achieving food security and conservation in coastal areas. Yet in increasingly industrialized oceans, competition and conflict with large-scale fisheries (LSFs) threaten the contributions of SSFs to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Here we have developed a small-scale and industrial fisheries interaction index and applied it to 126 countries using 2 recent global datasets. Vulnerability to conflict is highest in countries where SSFs are vital for nutrition, but governance is weak, especially in Africa, Oceania and Asia. We also identify low-exposure outlier countries with unexpectedly low risk of SSF-LSF interactions, providing insights for proactive policy. Preferential access areas granting spatial rights to SSFs are common in both low- and high-vulnerability countries, suggesting such policies are often reactive and may be insufficient alone without strong enforcement. As ocean industries expand, it will be necessary to strengthen SSF access rights and limit LSF overcapacity to reduce conflict and advance sustainable development.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{cronin2026conflict,
  title = {{Conflict with industrial fleets undermines the contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development in vulnerable regions.}},
  author = {Melissa R Cronin and Elena Finkbeiner and John Virdin and Gabrielle Carmine and Kathryn H Dalton and Juno Fitzpatrick and Christina C Hicks and Maria Del Mar Mancha-Cisneros and Xavier Basurto},
  journal = {Nature food},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1038/s43016-026-01431-z},
  url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42918892},
  note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Conflict with industrial fleets undermines the contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development in vulnerable regions.
AU  - Melissa R Cronin
AU  - Elena Finkbeiner
AU  - John Virdin
AU  - Gabrielle Carmine
AU  - Kathryn H Dalton
AU  - Juno Fitzpatrick
AU  - Christina C Hicks
AU  - Maria Del Mar Mancha-Cisneros
AU  - Xavier Basurto
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/22
JO  - Nature food
DO  - 10.1038/s43016-026-01431-z
UR  - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42918892
AB  - Equitable and sustainable governance of small-scale fisheries (SSFs) is essential for achieving food security and conservation in coastal areas. Yet in increasingly industrialized oceans, competition and conflict with large-scale fisheries (LSFs) threaten the contributions of SSFs to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Here we have developed a small-scale and industrial fisheries interaction index and applied it to 126 countries using 2 recent global datasets. Vulnerability to conflict is highest in countries where SSFs are vital for nutrition, but governance is weak, especially in Africa, Oceania and Asia. We also identify low-exposure outlier countries with unexpectedly low risk of SSF-LSF interactions, providing insights for proactive policy. Preferential access areas granting spatial rights to SSFs are common in both low- and high-vulnerability countries, suggesting such policies are often reactive and may be insufficient alone without strong enforcement. As ocean industries expand, it will be necessary to strengthen SSF access rights and limit LSF overcapacity to reduce conflict and advance sustainable development.
SN  - 2662-1355
ER  -