This is the norm for tuna hand-line fishing, and precisely what drew me to this story – the fact that these fishermen from Kiamba go miles out from shore on small boats with no toilet and hardly any cover from the beating sun to catch yellowfin tuna using nothing more than a simple hand-line.
There are various species of tuna, all caught for different purposes: the smaller skipjack and albacore are mainly fished for canning, bluefin for its prized meat as sashimi, and yellowfin mostly for grilling. However, if you have ever eaten sushi or sashimi at a middle- to low-end restaurant, it most likely was yellowfin. As I researched this story, it became apparent to me most people don’t realise that tuna doesn’t just come in a can and magically appear at the local supermarket. This is the story of the yellowfin tuna, which took me from the middle of the Celebes Sea to Sarangani Bay, Kiamba, General Santos City, Manila and finally, to Seattle, USA.