10-12 Sept: Focus on Quotas, Controls and Coastal Futures
European fishing leaders gather in Killybegs this week to challenge new EU control rules threatening the sector’s future. The leaders represent 10 EU States including Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Netherlands, France and Spain.
The AGM of the European Association of Fish Producers Organisations (EAPO) opens tomorrow, 10 September, at Ireland’s largest fishing port. The meeting is hosted by the Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation (KFO) and the Irish Fish Producers Organisation (IFPO). Delegates from 17 Producer Organisations across Europe, together with senior European Commission officials, will debate urgent challenges facing the sector, with sharp focus on the controversial new EU fisheries control regulations.
Fears Of Added Red Tape And Costs
The EAPO says robust controls are essential for sustainability and food security, but fishing leaders warn controls must be workable and proportionate. Otherwise, they risk undermining both compliance and confidence across the sector.
The EAPO is concerned that the proposed new EU controls will add costs and red tape instead of simplifying compliance. Irish fishing leaders argue that Ireland is already suffering from an impractical control regime that is discouraging landings into Irish ports.
While SFPA figures show Irish vessels made over 95 percent of landings into Irish ports in 2024, there has been a marked drop-off in landings by foreign vessels. Irish fish processors say this represents a 58 percent fall in foreign quota landings into Ireland, particularly in Killybegs, hitting jobs in their sector.