The group, calling itself the Committee for the Sustainable Management of the Southern Pacific Jumbo Flying Squid (CALAMASUR) is the product of a workshop held on 22 and 23 January of 2018 in Lima, Peru.
The participants agreed on common positions regarding the science and management of giant squid at the regional fisheries management organization (RFMO) level, and they developed a position statement that was sent to delegates at the South Pacific RFMO requesting key policy changes. Among other concerns, the statement asked for better compliance and enforcement in international waters, as well as the creation of a giant squid scientific working group.
As per FAO 2014 data, the giant squid fishery is the single most important squid fishery in the world, accounting for over 30 percent of global squid volumes. Chile and Peru alone caught almost 67 percent of the total volume in 2014, so the group believes a consensus of this nature by the principal squid fishing nations in the region will lead to more sustainable squid production in a fishery that provides livelihoods to fishing communities along the coasts of all three countries.