An international commission managing fisheries in the western and central Pacific Ocean has decided to increase the annual quota for large bluefin tuna next season.

The agreement was reached at an annual meeting of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission. The meeting was held in the Cook Islands from last Monday through Saturday.

The commission discussed how to manage the regional stocks of high-end bluefin tuna, which is a popular sushi topping.

Japan's Fisheries Agency says the meeting unanimously agreed to special measures for next season proposed by Japan and other member nations.

The agreement called for expanding the quota for large bluefin weighing 30 kilograms or more, while decreasing that for smaller fish weighing less than 30 kilograms.

The agency says that with the agreement, it now plans to increase the quota for the government-managed off-shore bluefin catch, using round haul nets and drift nets, by more than 400 tons from this season to 4,820 tons next season.

The agency plans to formally decide on the figure as early as next week. This will be the first increase in two years.

The agency also plans to propose at the next year's meeting to regularly expand the quotas on the grounds that bluefin stocks in the region have been recovering.