The European Commission has adopted EU-wide rules for weighing fishery products, with the new framework due to apply from January 2027.
The Commission announced on Monday that the rules will harmonise procedures used across the bloc and cut administrative workload for EU countries and operators.
Accurate weighing produces catch data used to monitor quota uptake, assess the impact of fishing activity and check compliance with the EU’s common fisheries policy — the rulebook governing fishing by EU vessels and in EU waters.
Under the previous system, EU countries adopted 44 different plans and programmes for weighing catches, with varying conditions across the Union.
What the new rules change
The new framework sets common procedures for weighing across the EU, alongside minimum requirements for weighing systems and records, the Commission said.
It also introduces minimum benchmarks for inspections of weighing procedures and defines the common content of sampling plans, control plans and common control programmes.
EU countries will still be able to adapt plans and programmes where specific circumstances justify it.
The Commission said the change follows an update to the Fisheries Control Regulation that entered into force on 9 January 2024, and replaces previous detailed weighing rules set out in Implementing Regulation (EU) No 404/2011.
