Last January NOAA changed the Haddock regulations from 18″ size with unlimited possession amounts to 19″ and 9 fish per person. NOAA changed the regulations because they felt that the recreational fishery exceeded the quota in 2010.

Newly available data shows that there wasn’t an overage by the recreational fishery for 2010. NOAA now feels there is no need to implement limited catch and higher size limits. You can see more here.

Such a quick change of regulations by NOAA due to more data in the haddock fishery, has me question the issues with the data supporting the problem with Cod stocks. Is the science correct? The entire cod fishing industry, commercial and recreational, is depending on good science. The threat of shutting down the cod fishery in 2013 has everyone concerned about the science and management. More to come.
The picture shows a beautiful live haddock on the deck of C.J. Victoria. That’s why the tail is curved. Haddock are great to catch and make fabulous dinners. It’s a full day offshore trip.