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Fishing sector represented by Europêche rejects tariff quota increase in seafood imports with zero tariff.
Europêche rejects quota increase of fish imports with zero tariff
 EUROPEAN UNION
Saturday, December 15, 2018, 01:20 (GMT + 9)
The EU fisheries sector is unsatisfied with the increase in the import volume of fish having zero tariff to the European Union (EU), which was recently approved by the Council of the Union.
European Union Council
This new quota was set at 750,000 tonnes for the period 2019-2020.
Through Europêche, the sector has stated that although it does not oppose a rational amount of this type of imports justified by the demand in Europe, the situation of the sector has changed. In this sense, they point out that the stock recovery in the fishing grounds in which the EU fleets operate now makes it possible to supply the European processing industry and thus ensure higher quality products with higher standards.
The fisheries sector points out that these imports have not stopped growing since 1992, when they were approved for six species and 43,000 tonnes, compared to the 750,000 tonnes that has now been set and 15 species, such as pollock, tuna or cod.
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On the other hand, the sector recalls that these imports (fillets and fish loins normally processed in third countries), also impact on the jobs of European industry and forces the European fishing sector to sell its product in other international markets where it can get better prices.
Europêche also points out that these imports of fishery products are independent from their origin, production mode, stock sustainability, labour standards or even legality or not of fishing activity. For the European association, these imports are only intended to obtain a better price from non-EU producers, while exercising pressure on the prices and employment of European producers.
"We can no longer guarantee privileged access to the EU market for products that do not respect social and environmental standards, such as those provided by China or Thailand." It is very important to correct the legal gaps in the current control regulations and increase controls. sanitary and inspections to ensure that the fishery products that reach the EU market are legal and sustainable," said Javier Garat, president of Europêche.
"It is not acceptable for countries linked to illegal fishing to benefit from preferential access to markets; it should be rather the opposite. The EU is sending the wrong message to the international fishing community that has done little or nothing for the sustainability of fish stocks and respect for human rights on board," he added.
Related article:
- EU Council of Ministers agrees on autonomous EU tariff quotas for 2019-2020
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