Small seafood vendors have been experiencing a decrease in quantity and quality of fishes due to poaching. 

It’s having a domino effect on restaurant owner Richard Rahming of Junkanoo Bar and Grill on Junkanoo Beach.

“Naturally, it increases my cost and in the long run, it passes on o the customer,” Mr. Rahming said.

“If the numbers are less, we naturally have to automatically have to increase our pricing on it sometimes because certain situations where one plate sizes would be able to suffice for a meal we have to put two.” 

Size is not a problem for all restaurants. Byron Austin, owner of Tiki Bikini Hut, has been able to get a stock by ample vendors to supply all year.

“We’ve been fortunate. We have been thriving, our business. I don’t know if they make us a priority, but the vendor that we deal with have always been consistent and they basically look out for us,” Mr. Austin said.  

“So many people coming to purchase, we always make sure to have an ample stock base on our volume.”    

Rahming, on the other hand, called for harsher consequences for foreigners who are caught stripping the Bahamas of natural resources.

“My thing is the biggest industry is the fact that how we regulate our fishermen here locally is one thing, but how do we deal with international poachers who come into our waters and basically strip us of our natural resources and take it to wherever they’re from,” Mr. Rahming explained.

“We have to make sure any international poachers who we come into contact with who may necessarily be catch in our waters be dealt with the strictest law.”      

Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Michael Pintard announced last week that any foreign vessels caught poaching will be destroyed and the offender will face harsh consequences.