FACT SHEET
EU FISHERIES CONTROL COALITION
From Net to Plate: Gaps and Benefits in Processed Seafood Traceability in the EU
© OCEANA Nicolas Fournier
The ongoing revision of the EU Fisheries Control Regulation provides an opportunity to finally implement traceability for all seafood products in the EU. As the world’s top seafood importer, the European Union (EU) has a duty to ensure complete supply chain traceability of the products present in its market.1 Yet, some Member States want to exclude processed and preserved products listed under codes CN 1604 and 1605, which represent one out of every six fish consumed in the EU, from the revised Control Regulation. However, as this brief shows: 1. E xcluding processed and preserved products from the revised Control Regulation would leave significant policy gaps, undermining the EU's effort to increase sustainability, consumer awareness, and to eliminate illegal fishing. Existing EU regulations do not have key traceability indicators for processed and preserved products (Fig. 1). 2. I ncluding processed and preserved products in the Control Regulation would improve consistency and critical traceability indicators (species name, catch location, fishing gear, producer ID) and bring benefits to a range of stakeholders, including processors, governing bodies, fishers and consumers.
1 To improve sustainability and consumer knowledge, the EU aims to make 'all lots of fisheries and aquaculture products traceable at all stages of production, processing and distribution, from catching or harvesting to retail stage.' (Article 58 of Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009).