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May 2006

Common Fisheries Policy

1. New annual schedule announced for management decisions regarding TACs and quotas
2. Commissioner Borg indicates special treatment considered for EU distant water fleets
3. EU Council ratifies Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the EU and Morocco
4. New labeling requirements for caviar in line with CITES
5. EU fisheries management decisions to be taken in public session
6. Government of Lithuania to give state aids for aquaculture

Fish hygiene

7. Forty three rapid alerts announced regarding non-compliant fishery products
8. DG SANCO reports on the controls for dioxins in Baltic Sea fish in Estonia.
9. Foods containing molluscs will be required to have allergen warnings
10. Regulations announced on maximum concentrations of colourants in trout and salmon feed
11. New reference laboratories nominated for a wide range of tests of food safety parameters


Common Fisheries Policy

1. The Commission has announced a new modus operandi for management decisions regarding TACs and quotas. In future for all stocks which are subject to annual quotas, the Commission will present a policy statement in April outlining the main principles which it intends to apply, and will table its proposals for Total Allowable Catches (TACs) by September.

2. In a speech to Europeche on current difficulties and long term perspectives for the EU fisheries sector, Commissioner Borg announced that the Commission is currently examining support measures to distant water fleets (on the basis that they operate under different circumstances to EU based vessels). Possible assistance may include the exclusion of these vessels from the entry/exit regime for fleet management subject to certain conditions, such as no access to aid and no return to Community waters.

3. The EU Council passed a regulation approving the new Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the EU and Morocco, setting out fishing opportunities for EU pelagic seiners, bottom longliners, demersal trawlers and pole and line vessels, and industrial fishing for small pelagic fish.

4. The EU Council approved a new regulation to implement a universal labeling system for caviar introduced under the 1975 CITES Convention, in response to declining sturgeon populations in the Caspian Sea. From now on all caviar containers, no matter their size and no matter whether the caviar is imported, re-packaged or to be exported, must bear a specific label specifying the source of the caviar and the year of harvest.

5. As a measure to improve transparency of fisheries management decision making the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF), will in future open its meetings to the public. As a pilot exercise, the forthcoming STECF meeting on Mixed Fisheries and fishing effort regime in recovery and management plans, on 5-9 June 2006, will be open to members of the public observers.

6. The Government of Lithuania gave notice of its provision of state aids to enterprises for "ecological development of aquaculture


Fish hygiene

7. Forty three rapid alerts were announced in May 2006 by Member States regarding fishery products found not to comply with health requirements. These included carbon dioxide treated swordfish from Indonesia and tuna from Vietnam and Thailand, Nitrofuran in shrimps from Bangladesh, dioxins in canned cod liver from Poland, Diarrhoeic Shellfish Poisoning in mussel meat from Norway, unauthorised food additive E250 in smoked salmon from Denmark, lead in fresh tuna slices from Oman and high content of sulphites in cooked prawns from France

8. The Food and Veterinary Office of DG SANCO reported on the controls for dioxins in Baltic Sea fish in Estonia. The report concludes that whilst there is adequate monitoring, there are no controls to prevent fish which exceeds the MRLs for dioxin and dioxin like compounds from being marketed in other EU countries.

9. The Commission has indicated that molluscs shall in future be included in the list of food ingredients which must be labeled due to their allergenicty.

10. The Commission is also considering proposals to regulate maximum concentrations of trout and salmon feed colourants such as "astaxanthin-rich" (Aquasta) Active substance: Phaffia rhodozyma in feed pre-mixes and supplements.

11.The Commission published the list of newly nominated reference laboratories for a wide range of tests of food safety parameters.