Today marks the formal conclusion of the North Atlantic Pelagic Advocacy Group’s (NAPA) two Fisheries Improvement Projects (FIPs), six years after work began, aimed at securing a sustainable future for North East Atlantic mackerel, blue whiting and Atlanto-Scandian herring.
‘The conclusion of the FIPs marks a shift in approach, not an end to our commitment to these fisheries,’ a NAPA representative commented.
‘They remain commercially important, and stepping back risks leaving longstanding management failures unresolved, as North East Atlantic landings are exported to markets and jurisdictions with lower standards.’
The new approach recognises that while securing a comprehensive sharing arrangement remains the goal, the pathway to achieving it will differ across the three species, as will how member businesses choose to engage with these fisheries. Whether businesses fully withdraw, partially step back or continue sourcing, they remain united in their commitment to secure a durable, science-based management solution.
Since 2020, NAPA members have worked extensively with governments and the fishing industry to address persistent management failures. Despite sustained engagement, the FIPs end without the comprehensive, science-based sharing arrangements required to end overfishing and establish long-term stability for these fisheries.
‘We maintain that the core challenge is not technical; it is rooted in international cooperation, compromise and political decision making,’ NAPA states.
‘Over this period, our coalition of 58 globally recognisable businesses has engaged Ministers, negotiators, industry representatives and NGOs, produced evidence-based policy analysis, participated in international forums, and developed a detailed model sharing arrangement covering all three stocks. Yet fishing nations have not collectively delivered the necessary reductions in catches or agreed sharing arrangements aligned with scientific advice. As a result, the long-term sustainability of these key stocks remains at risk.’
NAPA member businesses are now faced with difficult sourcing decisions as they work to uphold their sustainability commitments. Several have already stepped back from these fisheries after signalling they would do so if no credible management solution emerged. These choices carry significant operational and economic costs, and the effects reach far beyond the fishing sector, touching processors, retailers, food service companies, feed producers, salmon farmers, coastal communities and consumers. The market response now visible on supermarket shelves is the result of sustained effort to avoid exactly this outcome.
‘Our ongoing commitment is not open-ended, and member patience for a credible resolution is not limitless. Continued involvement requires a clear signal from all parties that a resolution is both possible and achievable,’ NAPA’s representative outlined.
‘Our view is clear; this is no longer simply a fisheries issue. The absence of a long-term solution represents a failure of international governance with consequences for economic growth, trade and food security that will be felt far beyond the fishing industry.’
