Photo Copyright: © Chris Gomersall 

This spring, the Northeast Atlantic Coastal States again failed to agree on a sharing agreement for the mackerel fishery. Further talks will in any case not be resumed before September. Meanwhile, on 17 June, the UK, Norway and the Faroe Islands signed a trilateral agreement on their quotas and shares in the Total Allowable Catch for 2024, 2025 and 2026. The three have awarded themselves 27.48% (UK for 2024), 27.83% (UK for 2025 and 2026), 31% (Norway) and 13.35% (Faroe Islands). The trilateral agreement is supported by bilateral agreements which result in the UK receiving a total of 33,462 tonnes of quota from Norway and Faroes in exchange for access to UK waters for those countries to fish up to 154,384 tonnes of mackerel. 

The three parties invite the other Coastal States to join the agreement, but the remaining portion is utterly incompatible with historic shares, recent track records and genuine economic interest. Furthermore, it legitimises continuous overfishing by some on the basis of excessive, inflated unilateral quotas that stray far from the shares applicable under the last sharing arrangement. For example, the Norwegian share is almost 38% higher than in 2014-2018. The EU industry therefore dismisses the partial agreement and does not see it as a potential cornerstone for a comprehensive agreement. It also decries the UK’s decision to swap in stolen goods, namely part of the artificially increased Norwegian mackerel quota, for the second year in a row. 

It is now clear that In the absence of an agreement between all Coastal States, the trend of setting excessive, inflated quotas will persist, adversely impacting the fishing opportunities and market position of EU fishers for years to come. The EU industry continues to urge the Commission and the Council to act decisively against this irresponsible behaviour, for example by using its power as the main market for the other Coastal States’ seafood exports. 

Tim Heddema, spokesperson for the EU pelagic fishing industry, comments: “Clearly, this partial agreement will not stop overfishing and will not bring back MSC certification. The parties involved are legitimising unsustainable practices by fixing these shares and transferring quotas from one to the other, quotas that in fact constitute Monopoly money as they should never have been set at such an inflated level. One would hope that the UK teams up with their sustainability-oriented partners in the EU rather than with those who are responsible for recent overfishing and, in light of current world affairs, have a questionable choice of allegiances. The only solution is a comprehensive agreement that is not based on distorted track records. The EU industry strongly urges all parties to continue negotiations and to do so in good faith and with the same focused commitment that was shown towards the recently agreed trilateral and bilateral deals.”  

Press contact:

Tim Heddema, Chair of the EAPO Northern Pelagic Working Group and Vice-President of Europêche | +31625045602 | theddema@pelagicfish.eu

EP and EAPO Press Release – NEA Mackerel Partial Agreements UK-NO-FO

Picture: © Chris Gomersall 2020 vision

Over the past days, first the Faroe Islands and then Norway decided to unilaterally set large excessive quotas for their share in the mackerel fishery in 2022, at 35% and 19.6% of the scientific advice for total catches respectively. They continue to fish at the same irresponsible, unrealistically inflated levels as in the past year, when both countries increased their shares by 55%. The basis for Norway’s decision, the zonal attachment approach[1], was in this case recently judged by scientists from all involved Coastal States as highly flawed, since the data on geographic distribution is incomplete and gives room for multiple interpretations.

These actions fly in the face of the ongoing efforts to reach agreement on a sharing arrangement between all involved Coastal States for the Northeast Atlantic mackerel stock. Although the Coastal States have set the total fishing opportunities for 2022 in line with scientific advice (794,920 tonnes), total catches will  again be much higher due to the fact that most parties are fishing substantially more than would be allowed on the basis of the last agreed shares. At this point only the EU and the UK are sticking with quotas based on the most recent sharing arrangement in place.

Tim Heddema, chair of the EU pelagic fishing industry, organized under the banner of EAPO and Europêche, comments: “This overfishing remains entirely unjustified and at odds with the sensible and sustainable fisheries management that the world supports and demands. It puts unacceptable pressure on a stock that is of great importance for many European fishing nations. While appealing to Norway and Faroe Islands to work in partnership for the benefit of all, we now need a strong voice from the EU, and moreover, we need strong action. The solution is not to sit back and leave it to the EU to compensate for the recklessness of others by fishing less ourselves, which in turn is further disadvantaging the EU industry’s market position. Instead, the EU has plenty of options available to counteract and deter this unacceptable behaviour, such as – but not limited to – using its power as the main market for the other Coastal States’ seafood exports. We are calling on the Commission for immediate action. In addition, with regard to further negotiations on the sharing arrangement, the EU needs to make it 100% clear that it will not accept the current overfishing to count towards an increased fishing track record for those parties concerned.”

[1] ‘Zonal attachment’ of a stock refers to the share of the stock residing within a particular country’s economic zone, if necessary weighted by the time it spends in a country’s zone over a year.

Press contact:

Tim Heddema – +31625045602 / theddema@pelagicfish.eu

EP and EAPO Press Release – 2022 NEA mackerel quotas Norway and Faroe Islands

In May of this year first Norway and then Faroe Islands decided to unilaterally increase their share in the mackerel fishery by 55% each. Now the fleets of Norway and Faroe Islands, but also the fleets of Iceland, Russia and Greenland, are massively targeting mackerel with as many vessels as possible. To a large extent their fisheries also take place in international waters. If this reckless and irresponsible behaviour continues with these coastal states fully utilising es their inflated, unjustified quota shares, the total mackerel catch will be 42% higher than the scientific advice that was agreed in November 2020 by all parties.

Gerard van Balsfoort, chair of the EU pelagic industry, organized under the banner of EAPO and Europêche, comments: “The EU cannot and should not let this form of extreme overfishing continue by these coastal states which is contrary to UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and particularly the 1995 Stradling Stocks Agreement. I find it incredible that at the same time as acting in such an irresponsible manner they portray themselves to be sustainable and responsible nations. There is no way Norway can defend itself for taking almost 300,000 tons or 35% of the scientifically advised total mackerel quota of 852,000 tons and then fish most of it in the international waters outside their 200 miles zone. Norway happily continues to export huge amounts of their seafood, including farmed salmon, to the EU market as if this is business as usual. The EU must immediately start using its power as the world’s largest import market for seafood and take action to stop such reckless and irresponsible behaviour”.

Press contacts:

Gerard van Balsfoort | Phone: +31 651 411 431 | Email: gbalsfoort@pelagicfish.eu

EP and EAPO Press Release – Mackerel Overfishing

Picture: © Chris Gomersall 2020 vision

Today, Norway decided to go its own way on mackerel by deciding to increase its quota share by 55% from 191,843 tonnes to 298,299 tonnes. The mackerel stock is highly migratory and widely distributed passing through the waters of several coastal states in the Northeast Atlantic. Since 2014, EU, Norway and Faroe Islands have managed to agree on a joint sharing and management arrangement. Unfortunately, Iceland, Russia and Greenland have never been part of this arrangement.

Gerard van Balsfoort, chair of the EU pelagic industry, comments: “Norway’s unilateral increase by 55% of its share in the Northeast Atlantic mackerel fishery is a new low in our fisheries relations and totally undermines the effective management of our shared and widely distributed pelagic stocks. The EU should seriously consider to use its power as the world’s largest import market for seafood to take action to stop such reckless and irresponsible behaviour by Norway”.

Since 1 January this year, the UK has left the EU and became a new and independent coastal state. Everybody knew that this would create new uncertainties for all players in the Northeast Atlantic as the UK had to establish new fisheries relationships with the other coastal states, among them Norway. Until now it has not been possible for the UK to reach a fisheries agreement for 2021 with its direct neighbours Faroe Islands, Norway and the EU. UK’s negotiations with Faroe Islands and Norway have now officially been terminated without an agreement, while negotiations between the UK and EU are still ongoing.

Gerard van Balsfoort concludes that “it is extremely disappointing that Norway, that markets itself and its seafood products worldwide as the nation with the most prudent and responsible fisheries management system, now has chosen to act in such an irresponsible manner. It seems that Norway has left the path of constructive collaboration with other coastal states. The first signal of this was given already around Christmas last year when Norway unilaterally decided to unlawfully grab part of the Svalbard cod quota allocated to the EU for its own benefit”.

Press contacts:

Gerard van Balsfoort: Phone: +31 651 411 431 | Email: gbalsfoort@pelagicfish.eu

EP and EAPO Press Release – Norway’s unilateral mackerel quota increase