San Francisco Frontiers - EU ups mackerel quotas to match UK despite overfishing concerns

Scientists say overfishing poses an existential threat to the Northeast Atlantic mackerel population, which has fallen into a danger zone where its reproduction is no longer guaranteed.

European Union countries heeded their advice in December, agreeing to a 70 percent reduction in mackerel catches -- in line with a recommendation by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), a scientific body.

But they reversed course Monday after talks to persuade neighbours to take a similar approach failed.

Agriculture ministers from the EU's 27 nations meeting in Brussels decided on a new, lower reduction target of 48 percent compared to 2025 levels, diplomatic sources confirmed to AFP.

That brings the EU in line with the quota set in an accord signed by Britain, Norway, Iceland and the Faroe Islands -- an archipelago administered by EU member Denmark.

French fishing representatives had complained that the deal allowed the four nations to overfish a fragile stock and still export their produce to the EU, undermining fair competition.

From nearly 13 million tons in 2014, the biomass of spawning-age mackerel has plummeted to less than 3 million tons in 2025.

Earlier this month Brussels had complained about the lack of progress in talks with its coastal neighbours.

"The EU has been the only party consistently raising concerns about the need to respect the scientific advice provided by ICES and to limit the overfishing by Russia," the European Commission said.

L.Ramos--SFF