E.U. parliamentary elections are slated for June of this year, and with it, the head of the Irish Fish Producers Organization (IFPO) wants radical changes to the E.U.’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), claiming the CFP has decimated, rather than propped up, the Irish seafood sector.
Aodh O’Donnell, the CEO of the IFPO, an industry body representing the country’s fish producers, wants new members of the European Commission to launch a full review of the CFP “to properly address the inequities in the Irish share of the quotas, particularly the inequitable Brexit deal.
“This is what is needed so our fishing industry can experience the kind of growth other E.U. and non-E.U. states benefit from,” he said.
The IFPO has argued that Ireland was unfairly forced to contribute 40 percent of fishing quotas to the U.K. as part of the Brexit agreement reached with the E.U. and has recently questioned the right of the E.U. to negotiate a deal with Iceland that hands the latter nation a share of blue whiting stocks in Irish waters.
The main benefits of E.U. membership mainly go toward other sectors such as agriculture, O’Donnell said.
“Obviously, there are some benefits to the seafood sector – from tariff-free market access to relatively frictionless trade – but Ireland is a net loser in this dimension, [and Irish fishing has been] a contributor of value to Europe in terms of access to our rich fishing grounds,” he said. “The main underlying cause has been the ongoing failure to allocate equitable quotas to Ireland. We hold 12 percent of E.U. waters yet have just 5.6 percent of the fishing quotas.”
Under the CFP, the E.U. negotiates fishing quotas on behalf of the bloc, but the IFPO specifically wants Irish political representatives to intervene and cut proposed access for other countries in Irish waters, such as Icelandic vessels fishing for blue whiting.
“These talks are being conducted behind closed doors and without adequate consultation with the Irish fishing industry,” O’Donnell said. “The unpalatable reality is that the E.U. is trading access to Ireland’s waters to secure reciprocal deals that largely benefit other E.U. states, not Ireland. This must end now.”
The IFPO seem to be gaining momentum on achieving its goals. In March, E.U. Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans, and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius gave a commitment to E.U. fishery ministers to conduct a full evaluation of the CFP.
“Our understanding is that the commissioner's announcement only means that there will be an evaluation document of the CFP for handing over to the next commissioner. The IFPO believes that this kind of evaluation is not sufficient,” he said.
O’Donnell said if untethered by regulations, Ireland could begin to look more like Norway's.
“[Norway is] a non-E.U. member with a similar population, but delivered seafood export growth of 25 percent in 2022. Its seafood exports for 2022 were worth EUR 14 billion [USD 14.9 billion], compared to just EUR 674 million [USD 727 million] for Irish exports,” he said.
Nearly EUR 9.5 billion (USD 10.1 billion) of those Norwegian exports comprise farmed salmon, but O’Donnell said the country also benefits from large quotas set unilaterally in Oslo, instead of in Brussels.
“[Norway has] massive quotas, including in mackerel, which they have increased unilaterally over the last few years and at multiples five times those of Irish quotas,” he said. “The impact of the unfair treatment we have received [from the E.U.] has led to stalled growth for our industry, falling catches, loss of fleet, loss of jobs, and major socioeconomic impacts on our peripheral coastal communities. We remain committed to Europe, but we are calling for the creation of a level playing field in a radical overhaul of [the CFP].”
