EU member states agree on fishing quotas for 2025

István Nagy, Minister of Agriculture (Photo: AM)

The agreement was announced by István Nagy, Minister of Agriculture, on behalf of the Hungarian Presidency of the EU, at a press conference on Wednesday night, at the end of the two-day meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) in Brussels. According to the Minister of Agriculture, it was a “superhuman effort” to reach a unanimous agreement, as there was very little room for manoeuvre and compromises had to be found that were suitable for all member states. He said, “Hungary does not have a sea, so it was not involved in this battle as an outsider, but this is precisely what helped the negotiations.” “We tried as hard as we could to encourage the parties involved to find a compromise. No one could go home having won everything, but no one went home having lost everything. We managed to find the lowest common denominator that was still acceptable to everyone,” he said. He added that this agreement had not been adopted unanimously in ten years. “The regulation will help Europe’s fishermen to continue to do their job while the marine ecosystem, marine fish stocks can develop and be sustainable,” he said. Costas Cadiz, the EU Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans, stressed at the press conference that endangered fish stocks must be preserved while ensuring that fishermen can continue their activities. The agreement on fishing quotas points in this direction, he highlighted. He said that a compromise had been reached in two important regions: in the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, 16 sustainable catch levels were agreed, while in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, measures were adopted that would reduce the loss of fish stocks while improving the economic opportunities for fishermen. In closing, he thanked, among others, the Hungarian Presidency of the EU for its contribution to the agreement, which will help the sustainable transformation of the fishing sector.

MTI