SeafoodSource.com: University of Washington professor and global fisheries expert Ray Hilborn, who has been outspoken in countering the widely-held belief that the world’s fish stocks are declining, has been accused by Greenpeace of a lack of transparency in disclosing his funding sources. Greenpeace’s attack on Hilborn’s credibility comes after the organization received the details of the professor’s funding sources through a Freedom of Information Act request. In a letter of complaint sent to University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce, Greenpeace USA Oceans Campaign Director John Hocevar called for an investigation into Hilborn’s potential conflicts of interest between his research and public statements and funding he received but allegedly did not disclose from 69 companies and industry organizations including Trident, PeterPan Seafoods, Pacific Seafood Processors, Icicle Seafoods, Ocean Beauty Seafoods and others.

According to outside income disclosure documents, which Greenpeace posted on its website, Hilborn received USD 3.56 million (EUR 3.13 million) in corporate funding for his research and additional fees for serving as a private consultant to various companies and trade groups. The group accused Hilborn of hiding his connections to industry in research papers appearing in Science, Ecosystems, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science and Environmental Conservation and others, as well as in his 2013 testimony to the Congressional Committee on Natural Resources and in an op-ed published in The New York Times.  Click here to read more.