Leading marine experts are calling for the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to be stripped of its responsibility for monitoring commercial fishing.
It comes as conservation groups worldwide are pushing for a boycott of New Zealand fish, amid growing concerns the Government is turning a blind eye to mammal by-catch and fish dumping.
A Newshub investigation last week showed the ministry knew of illegal fish dumping, but took no action against those involved.
Associate Professor Bruce Robertson from University of Otago believes the MPI is far too close to commercial fishing operations.
"It might actually be best if MPI don't look after marine mammal by-catch or oversee it; then perhaps it should be given back to the Department of Conservation," he says.
University of Otago has obtained documents that suggest fishermen are consistently under-reporting how many seals, sea lions and dolphins they snare.
Prof Roberston says the documents show MPI hasn't been recording by-catch since 2008.
When there's an observer on the boat, there are higher records of by-catch compared to when there is no observer. Prof Robertson says this is concerning as 89 percent of fishing trawlers don't have an observer on the boat, so there's a lot of potential for marine mammal by-catch to not be reported.
German conservation foundation NABU International is launching an international consumer campaign to persuade McDonald's and fish consumers worldwide to source their fish from countries other than New Zealand.
"McDonald's sources 8 percent of the fish for its Filet-O-Fish from New Zealand," New Zealander and freedive world champion William Trubridge says.
The organisation has teamed up with more than 100 international groups and conservation alliances in an urgent bid to avert the extinction of the Maui's dolphin. Between three and four Maui's dolphins die in fishing nets each year.
MPI has fast tracked the rollout of video monitoring on commercial fishing boats.
Newshub.
