The Regional Secretary for Sea, Science and Technology stated in Lisbon that the Santa Catarina cannery on the island of São Jorge is “another example of the successful investment and confidence that the Regional Government has always placed in the canning industry and the knowledge of canning in the Azores." 

Gui Menezes spoke, on behalf of the President of the Government, at the presentation of the "Mestre Saúl," a new line of gourmet preserves from Santa Catarina, which took place as part of the "Let's preserve what is ours" campaign launched by the National Association of Manufacturers of Canned Fish (ANICP). 

"This is a symbolic day for the path that the Santa Catarina cannery has been following and wants to continue following, namely the preservation of the Azorean heritage by ensuring the sustainable exploitation of resources and creation of value," said the Regional Secretary.
 
Gui Menezes stated that, "despite the difficulties, Santa Catarina is one of the canning companies that has innovated the most in the Azores and has maintained the quality and tradition of our canning industry." 

In this regard, he stressed "the outstanding efforts towards the recovery of this company" by its workers and the board. 

Gui Menezes stated that the Regional Government has acquired the Santa Catarina cannery, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, "always standing by its side." As he added, the Regional Government "is and will be committed to this investment." 

The government official stressed the importance of the canning industry in the Region, where there are currently four canneries, noting that “they generate, on average, around 60 million Euros annually and are represent more than 700 jobs.”

The Regional Secretary also pointed out that this will be "a record year for the canning industry" due to the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which increased the consumption of canned food. 

In his speech, Gui Menezes highlighted “the sustainability of tuna fishing” in the Region, mentioning that fishery has been “scientifically monitored” since 1998, through the Azores Fisheries Observation Programme (POPA). 

This programme is “responsible for the certification of Azorean canned products and pole-and-line fishing in the Azores with the Dolphin Safe and Friend of the Sea seals,” said the government official. In this context, he highlighted that pole-and-line fishing “is perhaps the most sustainable fishing in the world and has the least impact on the environment.” 

The Regional Secretary noted that, “more recently, the Azorean has been distinguished with the Naturland certification” due to the efforts of Santa Catarina cannery, the Association of Tuna Producers of the Azores (APASA) and the Regional Government." 

It is a German entity that defends sustainable practices and is responsible for the certification of products sold in high-value markets. 

"This is the image that we want to convey from the Azores and it is a true image," assured Gui Menezes. 
 
Regional Secretary also mentioned that “there is a need - and the Regional Government has been pressing for this goal- the positive discrimination of the Azores with respect to the fishing quotas that will soon be discussed” in Brussels. 

“In fact, considering the [low] volume of catches we make and the way we fish, I believe that the European Union should favour this type of practices, which consumers also value today, being fundamental in terms of ocean conservation,” stressed the government official. 

In this regard, he stated that the Regional Government has defended the "reduction" of fish aggregating devices (FAD), used in tuna purse seine fishing, which "are detrimental to fishing resources."

"The Azores are at the edge of the distribution of many tuna species and we believe that these devices hinder the migration of tuna, affecting our catches," said the Regional Secretary.
 
Gui Menezes also recalled that the Regional Government held in Horta the International Conference on Pole-and-Line Tuna Fishing in 2017. The event intended "to highlight this type of more traditional and sustainable fishing, which has an influence on the quality of tuna and, consequently, on the first sale price.” 

The government official added that the investment in the marketing of fresh tuna is “one of the major projects” of the Regional Government, whose implementation was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
“Azorean tuna has excellent quality, particularly bigeye and albacore tuna, and, in this context, it is necessary to create value for these species as they caught by pole-and-line fishing,” said Gui Menezes.