Pictured: A French fishing boat returns to harbour.
Photo: Adobe Stock.
In a move towards greater transparency in fisheries management, the European Union has, for the first time, published annual statistics on total allowable catches (TACs) and fishing days at sea, complementing broader fisheries statistics available from the EU's statistics agency Eurostat.
The statistics, covering the year 2023, provide a comprehensive overview of how EU fish stocks are managed and will be updated annually for the preceding year, the European Commission said in a news announcement.
EU member states are required to report their fisheries catches and fishing effort data for control and monitoring purposes. The EU also provides data on its catches to regional fisheries management organisations and to non-EU countries through international and bilateral agreements.
By making the data publicly available, the EU's Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries said it aims "to provide transparency into how EU fish stocks are managed."
The published information includes statistics on total allowable catches (TACs), which are catch limits set annually for most commercial fish stocks based on scientific advice, each applying to a specific fish species or group of species within a designated geographic area.
For stocks exclusive to the EU, TACs are determined each year at the December AGRIFISH Council, while for shared or jointly-managed stocks, TACs are determined through agreements with non-EU countries and regional fisheries management organisations.
Under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy, "fishing effort" indicates the number of days fishers can operate at sea, measured in either days or kilowatt-days, based on the type of vessel and the specific fishing area.
The full data is now available to view on the European Commission's fishing quotas website.
