EU Proposal: Keep Criticized Fishing Quota

The European Commission proposes that the fishing quota for herring in the central Baltic Sea – which was doubled this year amid widespread criticism – be kept.

At the same time, it wants to reduce herring fishing in the Gulf of Bothnia.

Every year, the EU decides on new fishing quotas. When it was decided last year to double the herring quota in the central Baltic Sea until 2025, it was described as a ‘death blow for herring and sprat,’ and even Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) expressed concern.

By 2026, the European Commission proposes that the quota for herring fishing in the Gulf of Bothnia be reduced by 62 per cent compared to 2025, from 66,446 tonnes to 25,560 tonnes. In the Gulf of Riga, a 17 per cent reduction is proposed, according to a press release.

However, in the central Baltic Sea, the quota of 83,881 tonnes will be kept. According to the European Commission, the herring stock is expected to develop well in the future.

Targeted fishing for cod has been banned in the western and eastern Baltic Sea for several years. This policy is proposed to remain in place, but with significantly reduced quotas for cod as by-catch. The only fishing quota proposed to be increased is for salmon in the Gulf of Finland, by 1 per cent.

^{Cover photo: Michael Probst/AP/TT German herring fishing in the Baltic Sea. Archive photo 2021.}