Europe > Northern Europe > Faroe Islands > Industry warns against 'quick deals' with Iceland and Faroe Islands

Faroe Islands: Industry warns against 'quick deals' with Iceland and Faroe Islands

2013/11/02

An organization representing the EU fishing industry tries to discourage the EU States from reaching a "quick transaction" with Iceland and the Faroe Islands for mackerel fishery, given the significant increase in the TAC recommended by a scientific body for 2014 .

Before this month, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) recommended that Atlantic mackerel catches in 2014 should not exceed the average reached over the last three years (889,886 tonnes). And it recommended an increase of 64 % over the recommended TAC for 2013, at the same time as a reduction of 15 % had been advised, reaching 542,000 tonnes.

ICES clarified that its approbation has provisional character, and announced plans to implement a total reform in the assessment of Atlantic mackerel in early 2014, with the aim of improving the scientific knowledge on this significant stock.

For this reason, the Working Group of the European Association of Fish Producers Organisations (EAPO), considers it is vital that before the coastal states start any negotiations on a equitable and a balanced distribution, the scientific community must replace its scientific assessment of this people.

“The mackerel fishing industry welcomes ICES advice that finally acknowledges next so a lot of years what fishermen have been seeing on the fishing grounds for at least 5 years, said the chairman of the Northern Pelagic Working Group, Gerard van Balsfoort.

"There is however a high level of frustration in the industry over this same period as EU fishermen have been held back by the EU institutions to make additional use of this precious and vastly increasing stock in their waters. This frustration is compounded by seeing catching sectors in Iceland, Faroe Islands and (recently) even Greenland been given almost limitless freedom by their respective governments to start and expand their mackerel fishery from close to zero to additional than 50 % of the allowed catches in just a few years,” he added.

Van Balsfoort expressed his concern over the huge TAC advice increase issued by ICES as he worries that EU states will rush into sealing quick deals both with Iceland and with the Faroe Islands for the allocation of the quotas, completely disregarding the consequences this will have for EU fishermen.

"By doing so the EU would reward these nations for bad behaviour, which is unacceptable for the industry," Balsfoort sentenced.

EAPO leader has stressed the fishing industry has not witnessed any change in attitude neither from the Icelandic nor from the Faroe Islands regarding the uncompromising position in the negotiations and the reduction of Atlantic mackerel quotas.

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