EU must protect fishing industry from unfair competition, study warns

The EU fisheries sector must regain its competitiveness and protect itself from unfair competition from third countries, a report presented at the European Parliament on Wednesday (20 March) recommended.

According to the study discussed by MEPs, the EU is increasingly dependent on imports of seafood products and the fishing industry is suffering from a lack of competitiveness.

The bloc “must provide new opportunities for the sector and guarantee a level playing field within the EU and with third countries”, Stylianos Mitolidis, a representative of the European Commission DG MARE, told MEPs.

In his view, the competitiveness of the sector is a guarantee of the EU’s food sovereignty and security.

Illegal fishing

In recent years, the loss of fishing grounds as a result of Brexit has reduced European production, while competition from third countries undermined the EU’s competitiveness, explained the researchers.

Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, as well as high subsidies to the sector and low labour costs in third countries, are creating unfair competition for European producers, the experts added.

What’s more, “the evidence tends to show that imported fishery and aquaculture products do not meet European environmental and social sustainability requirements”, pointed out Martin Aranda from the University of Coruna in Spain, one of the authors of the research.

In his view, this is jeopardising fair and balanced competition among market players.

At the same time, Aranda added, the EU is increasing restrictions on the fishing fleet’s access to resources and on the use of marine space for aquaculture farms, making it difficult to obtain licences, which is limiting the production of seafood products.

Experts also mentioned the “strict regulatory framework” of the Common Market Organisation (CMO), which guarantees high standards of quality, hygiene and labelling.

As a result, the EU is importing more and more seafood.

“At present, the EU meets only 38% of its consumption needs for fish products,” Arand pointed out.

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Free trade agreements

While researchers recognise that it is difficult to promote more sustainable practices among third countries’ national fleets, the EU can nonetheless “impose conditions of access to its market”.

This is already the ambition of the regulation against IUU fishing, which is supposed to dissuade countries like China from exporting cheap illegal products into the EU.

But on top of that, the EU should also require all imported products to comply with the conservation and management measures set out in the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), the researchers stressed.

They also called for making fisheries products “sensitive products” in the same way as certain agricultural products when negotiating trade agreements.

We need to “use the power of the market, a lever that has been used in the fight against IUU fishing and has proved its worth over the last 10 years”, Mitolidis said

“The ultimate aim is to raise our ambitions and the ambitions of the third countries with which we sign agreements. We are staying the course,” the Commission official added.

The study recommends that these clauses for fishery products in trade agreements be accompanied by enhanced product traceability, mentioning the origin of the fish to inform consumers. For the EU products, these provisions are already included in the regulation on fisheries control.

“Why do virtually no seafood products have a ‘Fair Trade’ label, as is the case for agricultural products, fabrics, building materials, etc.?” asked Pierre Karleskind, president of the Parliament’s Committee on Fisheries.

The European Commission is also in favour of “raising the ambitions for the traceability and labelling of fresh produce from Europe and third countries”.

Research and funding

These provisions require “increased inspections at the place of origin” to check compliance with European standards, as well as at the EU’s borders, Arand warned.

The researcher added that “some member states’ customs controls are less rigorous than others”, pointing out that third countries select “the most favourable point of entry” for their exports.

He and his colleagues therefore advocate for uniform controls at all EU entry points.

But these international safeguards are not enough. According to the scientists, strengthening the competitiveness of the European sector requires support for research and innovation, to achieve more energy-efficient, more selective fishing, and more sustainable and productive aquaculture.

This will require EU countries to make more “efficient” use of the financial resources of the European Maritime Affairs, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMAF).

Finally, the researchers encouraged the renegotiation of access to British waters for the period after 2026 – the end of the trade and cooperation agreement signed in 2021 – and the “reactivation” of cooperation with China under the Blue Partnership signed in 2018.

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[Edited by Angelo Di Mambro and Zoran Radosavljevic]

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