o_18thitrba1dr417tbpqe1soiuvva.pdf

Outdoor :: p71
Unify to tackle fishing challenges
In an open letter to SAFTAD a fishing tackle supplier urges the industry members to unite behind SACRAA
Andrew Wentzel Jnr of W.E.T. Sports has
written the following letter (abbreviated
here) to the SA Fishing Tackle Agents and
Distributors (SAFTAD) association, who
administers and funds SACRAA, the organisation
formed to unite everybody with
an interest in the recreational fishing
PerhaPs with all the bad press the Minister of
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) Tina
Joemat-Pettersson and her department are
currently receiving, now would be a good time
to move forward with SACRAA and establish the
numbers necessary to make a difference in the
bigger scheme of things.
If the Department can reduce crayfish limits,
introduce bag limits, take away quotas from
line fishermen and pursue NEMBA with no consultation
with market players, what more are
they capable of?
It’s time for the members of SAFTAD to move
forward by giving the recreational fisherman
a voice to prevent DAFF from becoming a law
unto themselves — it’s time to give SACRAA
life. Now is the time to maximise the potential
membership and try to sign up every recreational
fisherman in South Africa as a member
of SACRAA, regardless of whether they catch
crayfish, carp or couta.
If SACRAA has any chance of succeeding and
having a say, it will have to be through the
sheer weight of its numbers.
Tackle shops can canvass for members and
help to reach every recreational fisherman.
Special committees can be set up and coordinators
appointed for each major region
and/or fishing discipline to not only spread the
work load, but also increase the reach.
Social media is another cheap and effective
means of getting the SACRAA message across
to many people.
Members’ data could be stored on an electronic
device, similar to a bank card, which
is swiped to activate services or specials. We
could have a membership card through which
we would eventually gain access to a database
of contact details, fishing preferences, average
spend and market-related information
of all members. Brands could even offer discounts
to incentivised members to buy their
products. The possibilities are endless.
If set up properly, not only will the committee
be self-sufficient, but conservatively, it
will give voice to 1-m members. Imagine petitioning
government with the support of 1-m
voices … reaching 1-m members to communicate
on conservation, legislation or any other
matter pertaining to fishing the salt or fresh
waters of South Africa.
Let’s not waste this opportunity and act before
we are left with no choice — and the e-tolling of
the fishing industry.
It’s time for SAFTAD and all its members
to stand together and make SACRAA a viable
reality. It’s time for SAFTAD and all its members
to set aside our different areas of focus/
expertise and establish a voice that will look
after the needs of the recreational fisherman
in South Africa, who are the lifeblood of all
our businesses.
We need to understand that many of our best
retail customers are directly involved. They
supply crayfish nets, measures, wetsuits, fins,
masks, snorkels, boots, bags, etc. to recreational
crayfish fishermen.
It (the reduced bag limits and shortened
crayfish harvesting time) directly affects their
ability to do business and consequently affects
their ability to make profits. If all the
tackle shops lose a share of their profits every
year, because the Minister does not consult or
refuses to consider recreational fishermen, it
directly impacts on our ability [as suppliers] to
trade with them.
It impacts on their ability to purchase other
tackle, and ultimately can affect them keeping
their doors open or not.
Heaven forbid the Department changes legislation
for catching bass, shad, kob or yellow
tail… SACRAA can help not only in the sustainability
of fishing resources, but also in the sustainability
of the fishing tackle industry.”
After all, something as simple as shortening
the crayfish season, has a wide impact. Less
time allowed, means those people who might
have travelled to the coast for the specific
purpose of diving for crayfish might now go
somewhere else on holiday, or not go away at
all. This potentially impacts on fishing tackle,
outdoor and sport stores who might have benefitted
from the diver’s visit.
These stores in turn do business with a wide
variety of suppliers. The splash in the ocean
has rippling effects.
2014 March :: Sports Trader