News / Mackerel to lose eco label
EUROPE’S mackerel fishery is to lose its valuable Marine Stewardship Council environmental accreditation at the end of this month, it has been confirmed.
The news comes days after the Shetland shellfish industry finally won MSC accreditation for the local scallop and crab fishery after years of work.
The MSC took the decision after the European Union failed to stop Iceland and Faroe from making a quantum increase in their mackerel quota, raising it unilaterally from just a few thousand to almost 300,000 tonnes between them.
The EU and Norway have granted themselves a quota of 396,000 tonnes after Iceland and Faroe walked out of negotiations to reduce their catch.
The island nations claim that mackerel are spending more time in their waters and therefore they have a right to catch more fish.
The MSC say the island nations have put the stock at severe risk of overfishing and have suspended accreditation for eight mackerel fisheries from 31 March. Any mackerel landed in Europe after that date will not be able to use MSC’s eco label.
Mackerel is Scotland’s largest and most valuable fishery, most of which is caught by Shetland boats.
The Scottish fishing industry and the Scottish government have been pushing Europe to implement sanctions against Faroe and Iceland, but no steps have been taken.
Scottish fishing secretary Richard Lochhead said: “The suspension of MSC certification for mackerel is very frustrating. Ensuring the stock is sustainable – and recognised by international bodies such as the MSC – is in everyone’s interests.
“If the situation continues we face the prospect of the mackerel stock falling below safe limits by 2014. In fact, the Faroes don’t even have the capacity to catch so many mackerel with foreign vessels invited into their waters to plunder the stock on their behalf.
“We urgently need the European Commission to progress sanction proposals, so that measures can be quickly applied against any state pillaging shared fish stocks, as has been the case with the Faroes and Iceland.”
The MSC accreditation was introduced after the investigation into illegal fish landings worth around £63 million in Shetland and Peterhead that has brought 27 skippers to court.
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