SPEECH/99/155
Dr. Franz FISCHLER
Member of the European Commission responsible for Agriculture,
Rural Development and Fisheries
The future of aquaculture in Europe
3rd annual Conference PESCA
Saint-Jacques de Compostelle - Spain, 5th November 1999
Mister President (Fraga Iribarne), Ladies and Gentlemen,
1. WELCOME
It gives me great pleasure to open the third thematic PESCA conference which is
dedicated this year to the “Future of Aquaculture in Europe”.
First of all, let me thank the Autonomous Region of Galicia for hosting this important
event and His Excellency the President of the Junta of Galicia, Mr. Fraga Iribarne,
for his words of welcome.
1.bis Additional issues
It will not have gone unnoticed that this is my first visit and speech in fisheries since
being formally confirmed in my new responsibilities by the European Parliament.
And I am of course aware of the importance of Galicia in the worldwide fisheries
scene.
So, let me take this opportunity to say a few words on three other subjects which
are perhaps of less importance to the European aquaculture industry but which
have top priority status for the European fisheries policy.
Firstly, as the current fisheries agreement between the European Union and
Morocco expires in a few weeks, let me assure you that the Commission is fully
aware of the importance of the fisheries relations between European Union and
Morocco for the Galician economy; indeed a significant part of its fleet is active in
Moroccan waters.
The Commission has obtained from the Council the mandate to negotiate a new
agreement, and we are active at all levels to make the negotiations start. We are
ready to study jointly with the Moroccan authorities new forms of co-operation and
new mechanisms, involving both public and private interests, to maintain the mutual
economic advantages and employment in the fisheries dependent areas.
Secondly, as you are aware, the Common Fisheries Policy will be comprehensively
reviewed in the year 2002. In this perspective, the Commission has been organising
a series of conferences in all Member States over the last months in order to
conduct as widely as possible a consultation of the industry and public authorities.
On this basis and taking duly into account all relevant interests, it will submit its
assessment, its conclusions and its proposals to the Council of Ministers in due
time, i. e. before the end of next year.
Finally, and this is also important for the aquaculture sector, the Commission is in
the midst of discussions with the Council on the proposal for the modernisation of
the Common Market Organisation for fisheries products including aquaculture
products. Many of the existing mechanisms of the Common Market Organisation
which affect aquaculture producers will remain in place, such as the ability to form
Producer Organisations. It is also possible that some of the new mechanisms
proposed by the Commission to improve the supply and quality of products placed
on the market may include some aquaculture products. But this will be for the final
negotiations in the Fisheries Council later this month.
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2. WHY THIS SUBJECT? WHY NOW?
This year’s thematic PESCA conference is dedicated to the future of the European
aquaculture industry. There is a good reason for this.
Indeed, the European aquaculture industry can be considered to be at a crossroads
in its development. Overall it has experienced a steady growth and for some
species even an impressive growth in production over the last years and decades. If
we try to assess the general prospects for its future development, we can identify on
the one hand a promising potential for further growth and on the other hand
significant market changes and increasing pressures on the industry in
relation to food safety, the protection of the environment and the
management of coastal zones and aquatic resources.
Moreover, the current programming period of the Structural Funds is coming to an
end this year thus providing an opportunity for the European Commission and the
Member States to assess the performance and the impact of their financial
assistance to the sector and to draw our conclusions for future actions.
So, it seems to be an appropriate time to stand back and to review recent
aquaculture development, to assess and to discuss its future prospects and to
present our policy options.
In this context, I am glad that the Commission is in a position to present the results
of an exten-sive study on the prospects for Community aquaculture, which will be
helpful for the preparation of the new operational programmes currently under way
in the Member States.
Let me say how happy I am at the response to our initiative. Indeed, more than 250
people have accepted our invitation and represent not only the aquaculture industry
itself but also associated sectors, the scientific community, the public authorities of
the Member States, Community institutions and a number of third countries.
This proves that there is a real need for dialogue and a sharing of experience and
we are very happy to provide the necessary forum. In particular, I should like to
thank the speakers who will present their views and share their experiences with
you in this opening session and in the thematic sessions later.
3. THE EUROPEAN AQUACULTURE
STRUCTURE OF THE SECTOR
INDUSTRY
-
SIZE
AND
Please allow me to recall briefly the main characteristics of the European
aquaculture industry, before I take the opportunity to outline the Commission’s
policy for this sector.
3.1. The size of the sector
According to the most recent available figures, the European Union’s aquaculture
production amounts to 1.1 million tonnes in volume and to 1.9 billion € in value, and
provides approximately 60.000 jobs in terms of full time equivalent, including
upstream and downstream activities.
At a global level, the European Union represents approximately 3 % of world-wide
aquaculture production. However, it is noteworthy that for most of the species
farmed on its territory, the European Union is a world leader.
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But, because it is geographically concentrated in a limited number of areas with
suitable natural conditions, these global parameters do not adequately reflect the
importance of the aquaculture industry for certain coastal regions of the
European Union where aquaculture businesses and associated activities make up a
considerable part of the local economy and where alternative employment
opportunities are limited.
3.2. The structure of the sector
If I have only presented a very brief statistical overview of the sector, it is because
the industry is difficult to pin down in simple numerical terms: this is due to its
constant evolution and to its remarkable diversity. A few examples may illustrate this
observation:
The aquaculture industry in the European Union is made up
 of long-established species and products such as mussels and oysters, trout and
carp;
 of species for which cultivation techniques have impressively improved and which
have seen a tremendous growth in output over the last two decades such as
salmon or seabream and seabass;
 and finally of a wide range of species (both shellfish and finfish) for which
cultivation is still at an experimental stage.
There are products largely intended for export markets as well as species almost
exclusively for the domestic market. We can find high value species and products
for niche markets as well as what can almost be defined as commodities.
As far as the aquaculture businesses are concerned, there are many small to
medium-sized, but well established companies which occupy a specific market
niche, as well as bigger companies which have been able to achieve a level of
diversification or vertical integration which allows them to attenuate the effects of
fluctuations in prices and consumer habits.
4. CONSTRAINTS, CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS
Despite this diversity, all segments of the aquaculture industry have to address
some common issues. Here, I shall simply touch on two major developments, the
scope of which should be clear to all involved in the industry and to which
companies must react if they are to survive: on the production side: the
increasing constraints from environmental concerns and from competition for
space and aquatic resources; and on the other side the rapidly changing
conditions (threats as well as opportunities) of the market.
4.1
On the production side
The future of the aquaculture industry largely depends on easy access to natural
resources, such as space, water and fish meal for animal feed. Having regard to the
importance rightly attached today to conservation and environmental protection,
interactions between aquaculture and the environment are subject to increasingly
strict control and regulation.
Whereas poorly managed intensive systems can cause damage, high quality and
well-advised management combined with appropriate consultation of the other
users of the ecosystem could help solve a considerable number of problems.
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It is therefore important to support all the initiatives aiming to counteract the
negative impact of aquaculture activities. Moreover, integrated management plans
of coastal and rural areas, which would produce a co-ordination mechanism for the
planning of the development together with nature conservation, could improve the
situation appreciably.
Another solution for certain environmental problems could come from the later
development of technologies which already exist but require a substantial
technological advance. I am referring to offshore cages and to the systems
allowing the recycling of the water used for farming.
4.2
On the market side
The European aquaculture industry as a whole has slowly but steadily increased
its production over recent years and, apart from short term imbalances, the
market as a whole has nevertheless been able to absorb its output.
It is widely acknowledged that supply from capture fisheries will not increase,
whereas consumption per capita of fisheries and aquaculture products in Europe is
above the global average, but significantly less than that of Japan for example.
Thus the aquaculture industry has certainly not yet exhausted its market potential.
Consumers, though, often change their habits, attach ever more importance to the
dietary qualities and taste of their food and do not forgive mistakes or neglect in the
matter of food safety. But, I am sure you agree, consumers should not be blamed
for being demanding.
Companies which are able to meet the consumer expectations concerning food
safety, quality and credible certification and labelling of special characteristics (such
as production methods, geographic origin or freshness) are likely to find the
European Union a lucrative market.
Another major parameter, of a more fundamental nature, stems from the
international environment. It has become commonplace to speak of the
globalisation of trade and new competition from various third countries which, in
some cases, have significantly lower production costs.
Indeed, European aquaculture production has been and will be increasingly
exposed to international competition as trade liberalisation proceeds. Clearly,
the aquaculture industry is no longer able to escape these developments.
It is certainly legitimate to grant reasonable transition periods. In the long-term
however, it is essential that EU-production should remain competitive. For this
purpose, it is not intended to implement a market price support policy for
aquaculture products.
5. PUBLIC FINANCIAL
INDUSTRY
ASSISTANCE
FOR
THE
AQUACULTURE
In recent years, the aquaculture industry has been required to make significant
investments and these are still continuing today:
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The regulatory framework has made important modernisations necessary in order to
meet health and environmental standards. The globalisation of trade in the fisheries
and aquaculture sector has led companies to adapt and rationalise their operations
in order to remain competitive and profitable within this new and difficult
environment.
In this process, businesses could and can count on substantial public
assistance. May I remind you that in the current programming period of the
Structural Funds from 1994 to 1999 the construction, modernisation or extension of
fish farming units have been funded with almost 300 million €.
For the next programming period from 2000 – 2006, the new FIFG-regulation which
the Council of Ministers will hopefully agree soon and in which the basic provisions
concerning the aquaculture industry are no longer controversial, explicitly states that
the aquaculture industry continues to be eligible for financial assistance.
It is thus recognised that aquaculture as an integral element of the Common
Fisheries Policy provides a substantial contribution to the socio-economic
development of many coastal and rural regions in Europe.
Indeed, whereas employment in capture fisheries is in decline due to technical
progress and dwindling fish stock and whereas even in the processing industry
employment levels have tended to fall, aquaculture is the only segment of the
fisheries industry which has seen a slow but steady increase of employment
over the last years. Moreover, plausible scenarios for the medium-term future
suggest that the number of jobs in the European aquaculture industry could
even increase further in the coming years.
Financial assistance to the aquaculture industry has to be seen in this context. It is
a legitimate instrument in the European Union’s regional cohesion policy, as
aquaculture businesses, as a matter of fact, are mainly present in areas whose
economies are structurally lagging behind.
May I therefore take this opportunity to present in more detail the conditions and
priorities of public financial assistance to you as laid down in the new FIFGregulation for the seven years to come. Let me in particular emphasise the following
elements, which in this field reflect our policy choices drawn from the analysis
above:
 For the first time the regulation contains a definition of aquaculture which
conveys two ideas: human intervention and individual ownership. It does
however not include any provision concerning the purpose or destination of the
products. It is in particular not limited to aquaculture products intended for human
consumption.
 Secondly, financial assistance, as in the past, may be granted only for projects
which offer an adequate guarantee of technical and economic viability and which
avoid adverse effects such as a build up of surplus capacity.
 Thirdly, the influence of aquaculture on the environment will in the future be of
paramount importance. Therefore, a clear priority is given to investments that
substantially reduce environmental impact as these projects may benefit from an
additional financial aid provided by the Member State of up to 10%.
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 Finally, measures of collective interest with a broader scope than operations
normally undertaken by private businesses, carried out with the active
contribution of members of the trade themselves, can be supported. For
instance, collective aquaculture facilities, improvement of aquaculture sites,
collective treatment of aquaculture effluent, eradication of the pathological risks
of fish farming, preparation of environmental management models for
aquaculture are eligible.
In conclusion, the Commission is confident that this funding scheme
constitutes a suitable framework within which aquaculture development can
continue and eventually reach its full potential within the European Union.
Obviously, the FIFG constitutes only a general legal and budgetary framework
which defines eligibility criteria and allocates financial resources to Member States.
It is an instrument which has now to be implemented in and by the Member States
and together with the industry on the basis of consistent development plans for the
industry and for the regions concerned.
I thank you very much for your attention.
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