At the present time, between 60 and 70 million metric tons of sea foods are harvested annually of which 90% are fish (1 metric ton = 1 tonne = 1000kg)(Figure 9.1). Sea food is perhaps the only world food whose yield is increasing more quickly than human population growth. The world’s fisheries are based on only a few of the 20 000 species of marine fish, and three major groupings of developed countries dominate the world market. The western European nations have the most diversified and oldest fisheries. These fisheries are linked closely to the North American and Australasian industries by their technology and also by their approach—which is basically capitalistic. In contrast, the socialist state-run industries of Russia and the Eastern European countries are centrally planned and concentrate on distant water and remote base operations. Thirdly, Japan, the world’s greatest fishing nation, has recently expanded its interests on a global scale (Figure 9.2).