Fishermen warn 'the crisis in the industry is deepening'

EU Fisheries Ministers are gathering in Cork under Ireland's Presidency to discuss generational renewal in fisheries and aquaculture, faced with a chronic shortage of quota and spiralling operational costs; survival, not generational renewal, is the mantra of the industry here.

The Seafood Ireland Alliance (SIA) acknowledges the importance of bringing EU Fisheries Ministers to Cork to showcase the potential of the Irish seafood sector. However, the Government must use this moment to highlight how the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) has failed the Irish industry and decimated the fish stocks around our island nation, jeopardising any future for the next generation of fishermen.

Patrick Murphy of the Irish South and West Fish Producers' Organisation said: "The crisis in the industry is deepening. Long-established family businesses built through generations are going to the wall with the lack of fish available to catch and process. To halt this decline, to protect what little we have left, we need the support measures promised by the Taoiseach to the sector last December to materialise quickly."

The SIA points out that the challenges facing the industry are unprecedented. The losses in quotas for 2026 are estimated at over €200 million for the sector. Such losses challenge the economic viability of the entire sector, starve fish processing businesses of raw material, and impact the service industries that support coastal communities.

Aodh O'Donnell of the Irish Fish Producers' Organisation said: "No industry would be able to withstand the scale of losses we are experiencing without help. The quota cuts borne by our members are approximately 33% in one year. This dire situation, combined with long-standing imbalances in shared stocks, is now threatening the viability of fleets, processors and the communities that depend on them."

John Lynch of the Irish South and East Fish Producers' Organisation commented on the toll the decline is taking on coastal communities: "Up and down the coast, from Greencastle to Castletownbere, fishing is no longer the backbone of coastal communities. Once-thriving fishing ports are now hubs for passengers from cruise liners, dining in fish restaurants selling imported fish from anywhere but Ireland."

Brendan Byrne, commenting in relation to the Irish fish processing sector, cautioned: “The failures of Common Fishery Policy are self-evident. Ireland, with over 12% of EU waters, is struggling to survive; our entire fishing sector is undermined by a combination of the failures of the CFP and successive EU Commissions failing to defend the interests of Member State Ireland. The Common Fisheries Policy has really become the Colonial Fisheries Policy.”

Coming on the back of the recently issued Mulvey Report that highlighted many of the challenges facing the industry, there is guarded optimism that the Seafood Vision Report, to be published shortly, will map out a way forward.

Dominic Rihan of the Killybegs Fishermen's Organisation concluded: "We are committed to developing robust and sustainable stock rebuilding plans. This will require a reduction of effort by other EU fleets to allow key stocks to replenish. While our future is uncertain, we are not without hope, but this is predicated on the Government honouring the commitments made to us. This turnaround will require the effective implementation of a comprehensive suite of measures and supports built on sustainability. This is a prerequisite to underpin a robust long-term vision for the future."