The "poor man's fish" will be uncatchable if a planned quota carve-up goes in favour of commercial boats, say recreational fishers.
They have been furiously lobbying new Fisheries Minister David Benson-Pope over kahawai quota as the fish comes under the Quota Management System for the first time.
Quotawill be based on catch figures from past years. The minister will make his decision in July.
Big Game Fishing Council spokesman Peter Campbell said kahawai was one of the most accessible species for anyone with a rod and reel, and the commercial quota should be 1700 tonnes, not the 5200 tonnes the industry was seeking.
Initial advice from the Ministry of Fisheries was that recreational and customary fishers should be granted 4171 tonnes but fishing giant Sanford wants that cut to 3000 tonnes.
"If the industry get their way, there is not going to be a lot left for anyone else," Mr Campbell said.
Kahawai quota will be introduced for the fishing season beginning on October 1. The controversial allocation is being made as NZ fish stocks appear to be dropping to unsustainable levels.
The lucrative hoki fishery - the country's biggest, worth $220 million in exports last year - is likely to face substantial quota cuts, and ministry figures put a key snapper stock off the North Island's west coast at about half the sustainable level.
Sanford caught just over 2000 tonnes of kahawai last year, worth $2 million. But the company says the catch was limited by voluntary agreements on closure of some fishing grounds and catch limits applying since the 1990s.
Former ministry adviser and independent consultant John Holdsworth, who works for the recreational fishing lobby, said the sight of "acres of schools" of kahawai had become rare. "[The commercial sector] has already stuffed the fishery."
But Sanford says schooling is variable for seasonal and environmental reasons. It says the size of fish caught and consistent catches mean the fishery is in good shape.
Recreational fishers say the fishery will not survive purse seine vessels, using large nets, scooping up schools of kahawai located using spotter planes.
The five Sanford purse seining boats that operate out of Tauranga provide about 100 jobs.
Kahawai
* One of the most common catches for recreational fishers.
* Takes a wide variety of lures and baits and frequently jumps when hooked.
