Just what our boats are up against in the annual TAC carve-up

Earlier this year - and in an attempt to pre-empt the Landing Obligation debacle where, in the South West, a single species (haddock) will disproportionately affect the trawling fleet the MMO put out a call for participants in fishing data and research programme - roll on nine months to the annual December Fisheries Council meeting to settle TACs for 2018....

and the 2018 TACs announced in Brussels yesterday and some detail specifically for the South West (ICES areas 7b-k) were quickly passed on by the CFPO on Twitter - where there was an immediate response from the one (award winning) boat Crystal Sea that has worked so hard (with video surveillance technology and more) to redress the quota imbalance for the single most crucial discards ban species - haddock.

If that was not enough, while the Crystal Sea and the Tranquility (the only trawlers over 18m working in Area 7b-k)...

were both sheltering in Newlyn overnight as stormy weather passed through the Western Approaches...

wind speed and air pressure as the Sevenstones lightship weather station recorded over the last 24 hours...

and, courtesy of WindyTV, with much worse to come...

so it's no surprise to see that there were two similar-sized french trawlers dodging all night east of the Scillys...

and 18 of them east of the Lizard deep off Falmouth Bay. With the huge SW fleet of French boats drastically reduced since 2000, their substantially larger haddock quota no longer poses a threat to them when the LO kicks in next year - perhaps if they had taken part in the research collaboratively - or even been encouraged to provide their own data things might have been different for Area 7 haddock overall.  Much of the data collected by ICES is fundamentally flawed by virtue of how it is obtained.

More recently the website Gearing Up has been launched to showcase innovative and informed fishing projects that seek to reduce discards and increase efficiency,

THE FULL PICTURE: 2018 EU TOTAL ALLOWABLE CATCHES IN THE ATLANTIC AND NORTH SEA

On 13 December 2017 after all-night negotiations, the Council reached a political agreement on a regulation concerning the 2018 fishing opportunities for the main commercial fish stocks in the Atlantic and the North Sea.

As a result of this Council decision, the number of fish stocks managed at maximum sustainable yield (MSY) levels will increase next year to 53, 9 more than in 2017. The agreement also foresees solutions for the critical state of eel and sea bass stocks.

"2018 will be a crucial year in the implementation of the Common Fisheries Policy objectives. With this decision we have taken a clear step towards sustainable management of our fish stocks, while making sure that the agreement benefits our fishermen and coastal communities."

Siim Kiisler, Minister for the Environment of the Republic of Estonia

Details of the agreement

In view of the critical state of eel fisheries, it will be prohibited to fish for European eel of an overall length of 12 cm or more in Union waters of ICES areas, including the Baltic Sea, for a consecutive three-month period to be determined by each member state between 1 September 2018 and 31 January 2019. That is the time when eels are migrating and therefore are most vulnerable. Member states will have to communicate the chosen period to the Commission by 1 June 2018.

The decision is complemented by a joint declaration of the European Commission and member states aiming at further protecting the stock of European eel, for instance in inland waters, through a strengthening of eel management plans during all stages of the eel lifecycle.

Concerning sea bass the Council acknowledged the bad state of stocks in the Celtic Sea, Channel, Irish Sea and southern North Sea and their importance for many countries. It consequently decided to make additional efforts by only allowing limited fisheries with certain gears in those areas, while providing for a two months closure to protect spawning aggregations. Recreational fishing is further restricted, with only catch-and release fishing allowed during the entire year. A lower daily bag limit for recreational fisheries is also fixed in the Bay of Biscay.

Background

The Council agreement largely confirmed the initial Commission proposal, which established fishing opportunities in the form of yearly total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas by fish stocks in the different fishing zones. TACs and quotas concern stocks that the EU manages either autonomously or jointly with third countries, for instance with Norway in the North Sea and the Skagerrak, and related to North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) Coastal State consultations, as well as stocks set through agreements reached in the framework of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs).

Based on the scientific advice provided by the International council for the exploration of the sea (ICES) and the Scientific, technical and economic committee for fisheries (STECF), the Commission had proposed for 2018 to increase or keep current catch limits for 53 stocks and to reduce it for 25 stocks. The Commission had also proposed a fishing ban for eels the Baltic, North Sea and Atlantic.

One of the main objectives of the reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is to ensure high long-term fishing yields (MSY) for all stocks by 2015 where possible, and at the latest by 2020. In December 2016, 44 stocks were fished at MSY levels.

Together with MSY, another important objective is to reduce unwanted catches and gradually introduce the landing obligation. As from 1 January 2019 all stocks under catch limits will be subject to the landing obligation.

The setting of TACs and quotas is an annual management exercise decided upon by the Council only in accordance with Article 43(3) of the TFEU. It takes place in parallel the adoption of fishing opportunities in the Black Sea, and is preceded by a similar TAC setting exercise on deep sea fish stocks in November (every second year), and on Baltic Sea stocks in October.

Next steps

This item will be included, following finalisation by the legal/linguistic experts, in part "A" of the agenda for adoption by a forthcoming Council meeting.

2018 Fisheries Council TACs and cuts in full for the SW

This years #agrifish Council latest updates:

After #AGRIFISH Council @KarmenuVella: thanks to agreement on fishing opportunities 2/3 of fish in #Atlantic & #NorthSea will be subject to sustainable catch limits next year

From the @CFPO:

Fisheries Council over SW quotas: Cod up 9%, Haddock cut 11%. Pollack, Saithe, Ling rollover of quotas. Monk rollover, Megrim cut 10%, Hake cut 7%. Ray up 15%.

and from the SWFPO's Jim Portus - "So it’s all over. Not much good news replacing the poor outlook of commission proposals."

Cod 7ek plus 9%
Megrim 7 minus 10%
Angler (Monk) 7 rollover
Haddock 7bk minus 11%
Whiting 7bk minus 19%
S&R 4 plus 20%
S&R 7d plus 20%
7Ek S&R plus 15%
Sole 7d plus 25%
Bass 2 bycatch down to 1%

Goldfish - well you might think so with the high price

With just the one trip of fish for auction on the market this morning Alan on the @Ajax_Hake must have been well pleased with prices - at £100 a box or more the boys will be looking at a fat Christmas wage packet for the final trip of the year...

even smooth-hounds made good money though whose holding a BBQ at this time of year we are not so sure!..

unusually for a netter a solitary bass managed to get hitched up in a 120mm mesh...

apart from the one netter there were plenty of inshore boats, mostly handliners who put in a hard day at the office including Cod aboard the Butts with a few bass...

all if which kept the bigger buyers digging deep in their pockets...

the Ajax also managed to bag a few John Dory - a seasonal fish dish with roast chestnuts that starred on Saturday Kitchen last week cooked by Tom Aikens......

the buyers were keen to get the fish off the market floor...

Sainsburys will be happy to see a few dogfish on the market as they have been promoting a number of underused species including Cornish sardines of late as part of a national campaign...

mackerel made good money too...

as the Joy of Ladram made her way in to land...

fish was flying out of the market...

and on to the waiting transport...

to be whisked away...

a happy ship is a tidy ship...

as the Joy of Ladram...

begins to land her catch of mainly hake...

fish already sold is already on its way...

with more hake coming ashore...

for Thursday's auction...

no wonder these guys are happy in their work having just heard how sytrong prices were this morning...

so skipper Jimbo will be hoping for the same kind of return for the extra day him and the boys pout in...

down on his way to head out to sea...

Cod checks out a big landing of bass

and figures these were caught in nets rather than by pole and line...

there were around 100kg so well over £1000 worth of fish for the day!

Efforts, initiatives and strategies to differentiate small-scale fishery products

Please help us help you!

Small-scale fisheries (SSF, also known as artisanal, local, coastal, inshore) are an important component of global fisheries. However, several factors affect the capacity of small-scale fishers to sell their fish, receive fair prices, and to add value to their catches. Yet there are successful examples that we can learn from and promote.

This rapid assessment survey aims at compiling an inventory of efforts, initiatives and strategies adopted by small-scale fishers, the fishing industry and fishing associations, cooperatives and producers’ organizations, to differentiate their products.

As such we are inviting representatives of small-scale fishers, NGOs, researchers, or anyone involved in the small-scale fishing value chain, to complete this survey. Your answer to our questions will be of great value in identifying the several existing initiatives.

Please complete the survey by clicking here:

All information received will be treated as completely confidential and the data obtained will not be passed on to any other party.

Thank you for your participation.

Cornish Fish Producer Organisation briefing notes for the Fisheries Council

Management of the EU's fish stocks

Why does the EU need to manage fish stocks?

Europe's fish stocks do not have unlimited reproductive capacity. Without some control over who fishes what, some fish stocks may collapse or stop being economically viable to catch. The EU's fisheries management system:

• helps safeguard fish stock reproduction
• prepares the conditions for a profitable fishing industry
• shares out fishing opportunities
• plays a key role in preserving the marine ecosystem
• How does the EU fisheries management system work?

Most important fish stocks and fisheries are managed at EU level, through multiannual plans and annual catch limits.

Key terms

• TACs or fishing opportunities - total allowable catches, the maximum quantities of fish from specific stocks that can be caught (expressed in tonnes or numbers)

• MSY or maximum sustainable yield - the largest catch that can be taken from a species' stock to maintain the size of the population

• discards - unwanted catches which are returned to the sea and often die

• Landing Obligation -  vessels have to retain on board all the fish they catch

Each multiannual plan contains goals for fish stock management and may also include other specific conservation rules. Since the new fisheries policy came into effect on 1 January 2014, new multiannual plans will have to include a maximum sustainable yield target and a deadline for achieving this target.

The EU also sets annual catch limits for most commercial fish stocks. These are also called total allowable catches (TACs) or fishing opportunities. Each TAC is shared among the EU member states through national quotas. Individual member states are responsible for ensuring that their quotas are not overfished.

For fish stocks that are shared and jointly managed with non-EU countries, the TACs agreed at EU level have to be in line with the results of recurring consultations with those non-EU countries. These consultations are based on international agreements on cooperation in fisheries management.

International agreements are an important part of fisheries management in the EU. Two main types of international fisheries agreements are bilateral agreements and multilateral agreements.

Decisions concerning fisheries management can be taken not only by EU institutions in Brussels but also by national authorities, which cooperate among themselves at the level of the regional sea basin. The aim of regionalisation is to ensure that the technical rules are adequate and set for the individual sea areas. The representatives of fishermen and of regional administrations also work on specific measures to prevent unwanted catches (discards).

In the Council

The Council plays an important role in the management of EU fish stocks. The Council's responsibilities include fixing total allowable catches (TACs) and allocating fishing opportunities (article 43, Treaty on the Functioning of the EU). The Council takes its decisions on the basis of proposals from the European Commission.

In practical terms, this means that every year the Council adopts the revised TACs and quotas for each fish stock. This takes the form of a regulation which is adopted towards the end of the preceding year and updated as necessary throughout the year. The TACs and quotas for 2015 were adopted on 15 and 16 December 2014. The TACs and quotas for 2016 were adopted in December 2015.

Regarding international fisheries agreements, the Council is responsible for providing the mandate for negotiations, for signing agreements on behalf of the EU and for adopting the final decision implementing agreements into EU law. The Council also provides the negotiating mandate to the Commission when it represents the EU in the various regional fisheries management organisations the EU is a member of.

All this is enshrined in the Common Fisheries Policy