The new EU regulation for fisheries control, approved by the plenary of the European Parliament, include the following measures:

According to the new rules, all vessels must have monitoring devices allowing national authorities to locate and identify them at regular intervals. Some small coastal fishing vessels can be exempted from this requirement until 2030, and all small coastal fishing fleets will have up to four years to comply with the new regulations.

All fishing activities will be monitored, and catches will be reported electronically to ensure complete traceability, within a renewed fisheries control system.

The new EU legislation will contribute to gathering more accurate data, enabling better management of marine resources. All EU vessels, without exception, must digitally record and report their catches, including fishing logbooks, landing declarations, and sales notes. Captains of fishing vessels under 12 meters will be able to submit a simplified declaration at the end of the day once their vessels are safely in port and before unloading.

For the first time, recreational vessels engaged in amateur fishing will also have to report their catches through electronic systems established by national authorities or the Commission.

• Harmonization of Penalties and Tolerance Margins

The regulation will address existing significant differences between EU countries concerning penalties. The value of the fishery products caught by a vessel will be the criterion for the minimum level of fines in case of serious rule violations.

The "tolerance margin" meaning the difference between the estimated catches and their weight at the port of landing, will be set at 10% per species, with some exceptions for small-volume catches and specific species.

• Ensuring Landing Obligation and Traceability Along the Supply Chain

To ensure compliance with the landing obligation, EU vessels 18 meters and above due to high risk of non-compliance must have onboard remote electronic monitoring systems, including closed-circuit cameras, no later than four years after the legislation comes into effect.

Those involved in fishing activities must maintain information throughout the entire supply chain, from sea to plate: from the first transaction to the retail stage of fishery and aquaculture products. Complete digital traceability of fish and their derivatives aims to enhance food safety, ensure fair competition, and combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.

• Next Steps

Once officially approved by the Council of Fisheries Ministers, the regulation will come into effect 20 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU. However, the various measures will be implemented gradually, providing member states and fishing fleets with sufficient time to adapt.

APC S.A. contributes to corporate social and environmental responsibility initiatives, supporting actions related to the restoration of the critically endangered mollusk specie Pinna nobilis, coordinated by the University of Patras (Associate Professor Dr. Ioannis Theodorou).

In light of the encouraging data from the summer of 2022, when living Pinna individuals were discovered within the framework of the innovative project "Innovative Actions for Monitoring-Recovery-Assistance of the Threatened Species (Pinna) Pinna nobilis," funded by the Operational Program "Fisheries and Maritime Affairs" 2014-2020 (MIS 5052394), the University of Patras, with the goal of continuing the effort to aid the recovery of the species (repopulation), decided to proceed with a renewed search and collection of young Pinna individuals in specific marine areas of Greece during the second half of 2023.

In this significant endeavor, APC provided financial support to acquire a portion of the broodstock deployed in Western Greece. Additionally, APC S.A. mobilized companies in the field of marine aquaculture to offer additional sponsorships for the procurement of necessary equipment by the University of Patras, facilitating the execution of the aforementioned sampling, which, as mentioned, constitutes the essential first step in assisting the repopulation of Pinna. The response from the companies was satisfactory, demonstrating that the marine aquaculture sector can and should contribute tangibly and consistently to the promotion of biodiversity protection, actively supporting the sustainability of marine ecosystems and beyond.