The European Bottom Fishing Alliance (EBFA) have met Commissioner Costas Kadis in Brussels to discuss the future of bottom fishing and the sustainability of EU fisheries.
During the meeting, EBFA leaders underlined the sector’s key role in food security and its ongoing efforts to align environmental protection with viable fishing operations.
”Our fleets cannot plan for the future if the policy landscape keeps shifting under their feet. Fishers need predictability, proportionate rules and decisions rooted in the best available science,” said Iván López van der Veen, chair, EBFA.
“We count on the Commission to ensure that Europe’s environmental ambitions do not come at the cost of its coastal communities or its capacity to feed its citizens, especially since both can coexist.”
Regulatory pressure
A central theme of the meeting was growing regulatory pressure across Europe, including proposals linked to the Ocean Act and potential blanket bans on bottom fishing in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).
EBFA warned that these broad restrictions risk undermining both sustainability goals and food sovereignty, arguing that effective fisheries management, not sweeping closures, remains the best tool to protect marine ecosystems.
Concerns also centred on the United Kingdom’s unilateral MPA measures, which EBFA argued rely on flawed data and could inflict disproportionate losses on EU fleets.
The Alliance urged the Commission to ensure that any cross-border fishing regulations remain proportionate and fully compliant with existing agreements.
EBFA emphasised that many MPAs target species or habitats unaffected by bottom fishing, while the EU already maintains strict fishing regulations and vulnerable ecosystem protections.
It said that predictability, balanced policies and long-term sustainability are essential for thriving fisheries and resilient coastal communities going forward.
