The Marine Odyssey
🦐🪸Fishing and Aquaculture in Europe🪼🌿
By Joséphine Gatin and Anna Yildiran
Welcome to the second episode of our series on fishing! As promised, this time we’re diving into capture fishing and aquaculture in Europe.
We’ll start by looking at the main regulatory frameworks that govern fishing, with a particular focus on the European Union.
Then, we’ll explore some key figures on the fishing industries of various European countries, including Norway, Russia, and Turkey.
The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)
The CFP is a set of rules established by the European Union (EU) to ensure the sustainable management of European fishing fleets and the conservation of fish stocks. Originally a part of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), it became a separate legislative framework in 1970.
Over time, the accession of new member states to the EU brought fresh challenges — particularly in terms of resource conservation and international relations, especially after the introduction of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs). To remain effective, the CFP needed to address the following key issues [1]:
👉 The diversity of fishing practices and economic structures in the new member states
👉 The growing need for sustainable management to prevent overfishing as fleets expanded
👉 Europe’s role in international negotiations on fishing rights and shared stocks
The CFP’s primary goal is the long-term environmental sustainability of fisheries and aquaculture, while also supporting economic, social, and employment-related benefits. It is built on an ecosystem-based approach that aims to minimize the environmental impact of fishing and ensure food security [2].
Due to geopolitical and historical reasons, the CFP is more developed in the North Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, and less s o in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Nevertheless, the policy is applied uniformly across all EU waters [3][4].
* This map was created before the UK left the EU.
The map shows the various Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) in blue and the European overseas territories in green. In orange, you can see the EEZs of the European Economic Area and the waters governed by the 1920 Treaty of Paris, which continue to be a source of tension between Norway and certain EU countries [5][6].
European fishing doesn’t take place only near the European continent, in fact, European countries have EEZs all over the world! For example, France operates a toothfish fishery ( a species highly valued in Asia for its white flesh) in the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF).
The international dimension of the CFP
European fishing isn’t limited to activities within EU waters. The CFP also has an external dimension, meaning the EU is actively involved in:
👉 18 Regional Fisheris Management Organizations (RFMOs), including 5 tuna RFMOs and 13 non-tuna RFMOs, as well as various advisory bodies. The EU is the most influential actor within RFMOs and fisheries organizations worldwide.
👉 Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements (SFPAs) with third countries, which allow EU fleets to fish in their EEZs under fair and regulated conditions.
SFPAs ae designed to ensure environmental sustainability, support scientific research, and promote respect for human rights worldwide [7].
In exchange for fishing rights, the EU provides financial assistance to partner countries to help strengthen their local fishing sectors and combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, a topic that will be explored in more detail in the next part.
Combatting Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing
The EU takes a strong stance against IUU fishing, which is estimated to cost the global fishing sector around €10 billion annually and accounts for nearly 20% of the value of worldwide catches.
To combat this issue, the EU requires that all fishery products be legally certified and holds flag states accountable for their international obligations. Since 2010, the EU has worked with over 60 third countries to improve the enforcement of regulations targeting IUU fishing [8].
Europe’s Contribution to Global Fisheries and Production
After outlining the regulatory framework for fishing within the European Union, we expanded our analysis to cover the entire European continent, including countries such as Norway and Russia. To do this, we used data from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) from 2022.
Continental Europe in Global Fishing
Which countries are leaders in capture fisheries and aquaculture?
In 2022, Norway and Russia were the leading European countries in fishing. Russia ranked first in capture fisheries, while Norway dominated aquaculture production, accounting for 47%.
The top countries for capture fisheries were Russia (36.5%), Norway (17.9%), Iceland (10.4%), and Spain (5.9%), with Russia and Norway together making up more than half of Europe’s total capture production.
Regarding aquaculture, Norway alone was responsible for nearly half of Europe’s total production (47%), followed by Russia (9.1%).
Which species are the most caught?
⚠️ It is important to specify that, for the two figures above, the species shown are those caught by vessels flying the flag of continental European countries. This means these species are not necessarily caught in European waters, nor exclusively by EU member states.
The most caught species in 2022 was Alaska pollock, while Atlantic salmon accounted for more than half of aquaculture production.
European trends in 2022 differ from the global average. In Europe, capture fisheries produce nearly seven times more than aquaculture, whereas globally, the two sectors are almost evenly balanced.
It’s important to note that Asia is the main contributor to raising the global share of aquaculture to nearly 50%.
For a more detailed and precise statistical analysis, we limited the study of FAO fishing areas classified as ‘European’:
🌍 Area 27: Northeast Atlantic
🌍 Area 37: Mediterranean and Black Sea
🌍Area 5: European inland waters
Which countries are the top producers of capture fisheries and aquaculture by FAO zone?
What are the most caught species in capture fisheries and aquaculture by FAO fishing area?
Freshwater fishing accounts for only 7% of the total catches (including both capture fisheris and aquaculture) in Europe, but it’s important to highlight its presence across the entire European territory.
In terms of species colume, fish caught in the Northeast Atlantic are more than 4 times greater than those caught in the Mediterranean or European inland waters.
Conclusion
Fishing and aquaculture are vital to Europe’s economy and food security. However, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA), in 2022, 40% of fish and seafood stocks were either in poor condition or being exploited unsustainably [9]. To safeguard these resources for the long term, it is urgent to strengthen management policies, align fishing practices with scientific recommendations, and continue efforts towards genuine sustainability.
We look forward to welcoming you next time for a deeper look into the fishing sector in France!
Bibliography
[1] https://oceans-and-fisheries.ec.europa.eu/fisheries/markets-and-trade/seafood-markets_en
[4] https://ue.delegfrance.org/outre-mer-2038#Les-pays-et-territoires-d-outre-mer-PTOM
[6] https://opiniojuris.org/2020/06/16/norways-inconsistent-interpretation-of-the-1920-treaty-of-paris/
[8] file:///C:/Users/lionf/Downloads/facts%20et%20figures%20sur%20la%20commune%20de%20pêche%20politique-KLAH21001ENN.pdf
Member of the European PEF (Product Environmental Footprint) Technical Advisory Board.
Member of the French ADEME environmental labelling working group.
