Sustainable tuna fishing in the Maldives - in pictures

Using a traditional pole and line method, unchanged for generations, fishermen in the Maldives haul tuna from the waters 10-20 miles beyond the coral reef edge. They are fishing off Hulhumeedhoo, a tiny island ringed by blue waters, coral reefs and palm trees. Home to 4,000 people, tuna fishing is the island's lifeblood Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

UK retailers such as Sainsbury's, M&S and Waitrose, and brands such as Fish 4 Ever and Reel Fish, have for several years sourced their tuna from Maldivian fishers, often via Thailand-based processors, because of its lack of by-catch of sharks, rays, dolphins or turtles Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Fishermen create a feeding frenzy by throwing bait into the waters to entice the hungry tuna. At the back of the flat-ended boat, 10-12 fishers flick the tuna onboard with their pole and line, shouting with joy and the exertion Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Purse seining nets, often used by European fishing vessels in the Indian Ocean, indiscriminately scoop up all sorts of marine life around Fish Aggregation Devices, leaving empty oceans behind them. In the Maldives, where fishing accounts for 6-8% of the country's GDP, the fishermen are worried that these nets are destroying entire schools of fish Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Ali Saeed, a 45-year-old master fisherman, operates one of the largest 'dhoni' (pole and line fishing boats) in the area. Saeed inherited his first fishing boat from his father at the age of 20. Twenty-five years later, he now employs more than 20 fishermen and is building a new home for his family Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

'We only catch tuna, nothing else, because our lines are specially made for yellow fin and skipjack tuna, so it is not possible for any shark or dolphin to get injured or killed,' says Saeed Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Bait used by pole and line fishermen Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

'The best way to fish is to use little fish as bait and then use pole and line to fish some of the tuna up. This is fish for the future,' Saeed says Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Hooks on poles used for pole and line fishing Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Tuna is delivered to the anchored offshore weigh station, bringing home a catch of 1.3 tonnes that day Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Back on land, the village gathers at the port to take home their share of the catch on bikes or mopeds Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Saeed and his family enjoy a lunch of tuna and rice on the island of Hulhumeedhoo, Addu atoll. One of Saeed's four children has set up a fish export company, keeping the family interest in a practice that has served his island for generations Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Vice-president of the town board, Ali Mohamed, describes how the boats have become bigger and better in recent years. The village has experienced a leap in prosperity in the past five years. 'Earlier the men would just go fishing and now the people are sending their children to schools. We can also see the difference in the dhonis. We have high-tech machinery like GPS systems now' Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace

Ahmed Zahir Lainofaruge, 36, who has spent nine years on Saeed's boat, dreams of becoming a master fisherman with a boat of his own. 'Pole and line fishing ensures that the fish will remain here. If they use a net, then all the fish is gone and there is no fish to catch the next day,' he says Photograph: Paul Hilton/Greenpeace