Considering the implications of a November 2021 survey estimate of sardine biomass east of Cape Agulhas

There was no survey estimate of sardine biomass for the area east of Cape Agulhas from the November‐December 2021 hydroacoustic survey. Management recommendations from the Small Pelagic Working group for sardine catch limits in 2022 were thus based on an assessment and short‐term projection which had a missing data point. Given the possibility of approximating this biomass by back‐projecting the adult biomass estimated east of Cape Agulhas during the June 2022 survey, the assessment and short‐term projections are re‐run, now assuming three alternative values for a November 2021 survey estimate of sardine biomass east of Cape Agulhas. The projections indicate that the impact of the range of catches already awarded is more negative for the resource than that considered when making management recommendations earlier this year if the survey estimate of biomass east of Cape Agulhas in November 2021 is assumed to be 100 000t. In contrast, the impact is less negative if the survey estimate of biomass is assumed to be 300 000t.