Javier Ojeda, General Secretary of the Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP), and Hilde Crevits, Vice-Minister-President and Minister for Welfare, Public Health, Family and Fisheries of Belgium.
The Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP)
The General Secretary of the Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP), Javier Ojeda, assisted last week at the informal Meeting of EU Ministers of Fisheries in Bruges, to discuss 'The future of EU aquaculture'.
The meeting was chaired by Vice-Minister-President and Minister for Welfare, Public Health, Family and Fisheries of Belgium Hilde Crevits, in the context of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2024.
According to Ojeda, the ministries of the environment and environmental authorities "should stop gold-plating EU environmental legislation and avoid unnecessary misuse in the implementation of the precautionary principle."
"The suffocating EU environmental legal framework is making the primary production of food in the EU an impossible mission," he alerted.
In more detail, the aquaculture producers's spokesperson asked for sustainable intensification of finfish and shellfish production, clear labeling for aquatic food, and an Aquaculture Common Policy.
Therefore, all agents will share a vision for the future of the EU's aqua farming and adapt EU policies to this sector's requirements. "Just like the President of the European Commission has offered to EU land farmers," he stated.
Finally, the EU fisheries ministers, delegates from the European Commission and the European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, the Chairman of the Fisheries Committee in the European Parliament, representatives of the Council Secretariat, and stakeholders discussed the future of fisheries.
On the other hand, The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of Spain, Luis Planas, has pointed out the need for a new and renovated fishing fleet.
"Fishing in the 21st century cannot be carried out with 20th-century vessels, and this requires greater investment". The aim, he added, is to make the fleet more efficient, decarbonized, safe and comfortable, so that fishing, "a difficult and dangerous activity, is more attractive to young people," he explained.
In addition, Planas has emphasized the importance of maintaining direct and continuous contact with farmers, livestock breeders, and fishermen to discuss their problems and seek solutions to their demands.
In 2023, EU Fisheries Ministers united in Vigo to drive the decarbonization of fisheries and aquaculture sector.
