The activities of EU fishing vessels will be more closely monitored under new rules approved last week by the European Parliament.
The "revamped" rules, the EU says, is intended to "ensure full traceability". The EU says the new control measures will enable better and more accurate data collection, allowing for improved management of marine resources and full digital traceability.
Under the new legislation, every fishing boat obliged to carry a tracking device onboard. This will enable national authorities to locate and identify vessels at regular intervals.
Vessels must also register and declare their catches digitally. The EU says that this "applies in particular to fishing logbooks, transhipment declarations and landing declarations. Masters of vessels under 12 meters will be able to complete and submit a simplified declaration at the end of the fishing day, once they are safe in port and before landing."
With this reform of fisheries control, the EU is also taking action to enforce the so-called landing obligation - a ban on discarding unwanted catches at sea, which came into full force in January 2019 as part of a phased implementation under the Common Fisheries Policy of 2013.
Under the new measures, EU vessels of 18 meters or more that may pose a high risk of non-compliance will have to carry on-board remote electronic monitoring systems, including closed-circuit television (CCTV), at the latest four years after the entry into force of the legislation.
In a move to achieve full digital traceability, the new rules now mean operators will must retain information from across the supply chain, from the sea to the plate.
This includes everything from first sale to the retail stage of fishery and aquaculture products.
According to the EU announcement, full digital traceability of fish and fish derivatives is intended to "reinforce food safety, ensure fairer competition and combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing".
For the first time, recreational fishing vessels will also need to declare catches via national or Europe-wide electronic systems.
However, some small-scale fishing vessels may be exempted from the obligations until 2030, while small-scale fishing fleets will be allowed up to four years to adapt to the new requirements, the EU said.
The new regulations are also intended to tackle existing disparities between EU countries regarding sanctions imposed for infringement of the rules.
Instead, in cases of serious infringement, the value of fishery products caught by a vessel will now define the minimum level of fines applied to it.
The margin of tolerance - the difference between the estimate of the fish caught and the weight at the landing port - will be set at 10% per species, with some exceptions for small-volume catches and for some particular species.
Commenting on the new regulation, EU Rapporteur Clara Aguilera described it as "a balanced agreement for the EU’s fisheries sector".
"The new control rules will be harmonised and more transparent, with fully digital procedures. Fishers will have four years to adapt to the changes and the small-scale fisheries sector will benefit from simplified reporting obligations. With this, MEPs are responding to the demand of consumers for information about the origin of all the food they eat," Aguilera said.
The new fisheries control regulation measures were approved by plenary on Tuesday 17 October 2023, with 438 to 146 and 40 abstentions.
Once formally adopted by the Council, the regulation will enter into force 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal. However, several measures will be gradually implemented, giving member states and fishing fleets enough time to adapt.
