Brussels, 11/12/2003 (Agence Europe) - Responding to an appeal by the "European Fishing Action Group" (EFAG), fishermen from several EU countries organised a day of action on 10 December in Antwerp against the European Commission's proposals to significantly reduce catches of the most threatened species of fish in 2004. Boats also blocked EU ports, notably in France. The EFAG brings bosses and workers in the EU fisheries sector together (France, Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, United Kingdom, United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain and Portugal).
Europêche (the association of national organisations for EU fishing businesses) and the Fisheries section of Cogeca (General Committee for Agricultural Cooperation in the EU), which joined in the day's protests declared in a press statement that it was high time political leaders, "pay more attention to the worries and demands of the sector, well beyond the protection of fishing stocks". These organisations repeated the fact that fishermen oppose the reductions in total allowable catches (TAC) of more than 15% , which are considered, "intolerable and unmanageable from an economic standpoint". Europêche and Cogeca are specifically demanding a roll over in 2004 of the current TAC on cod, sole and plaice. These organisation also highlight the need to assess the current measures before introducing new measures for restricting fishing effort, "pending a concerted assessment of the results of previous conservation measures taken" by fishermen (closures of spawning zones, extremely low TACs, surveillance of fishing effort, improvement of gear selectiveness, enlarged mesh openings etc and the results already obtained on the ground, such as the 60% recuperation of North Sea cod stock. Professionals in the sector area also demanding impact studies to be carried out before the implementation of replenishment of threatened stock (cod and hake).