Rei dos Açores Featured in International Documentary, Now Available on YouTube

Rei dos Açores, our family’s tuna vessel from the Azores, is featured in a documentary that first reached European audiences on ARTE, the European culture TV channel, and has now been released globally on YouTube via DW Documentary.

The documentary follows the daily reality of the remaining pole-and-line fleet in the Azores, a sector operating under rising costs, unpredictable catches, quota ceilings, and tightening regulatory pressure. It also highlights what sets this fishery apart: a model built on selectivity and low environmental impact, sustained by small-scale operations and a disciplined way of working at sea.

For our vessel, and for Azorean tuna fishing as a whole, this kind of international exposure matters. It helps audiences understand what responsible fishing looks like beyond labels, reinforces confidence in the way our tuna is caught and handled, and brings greater clarity to the policy debate. Sustainability cannot be designed as a one-size-fits-all constraint. It should align incentives with real-world impact, rewarding the fishing methods that demonstrably reduce harm and strengthen the long-term viability of coastal economies.

Keeping this fishery alive will not happen by default. It requires visibility, fair conditions, and collective effort. Above all, it requires the determination to fight for a future where traditional pole-and-line fishing remains part of our community’s economy and culture.

Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlXRA-X8sUY