Working for sustainable European fisheries

Europe is the fifth largest producer of fishery goods in world, and is the world's number one importer of fish. That, along with having the world's third largest fishing fleet, makes it a significant player in the global seafood market.

Europe is therefore a vital geography in Environmental Defense Fund's work to secure more food on the plate, more fish in the sea and thriving coastal communities. We partner with local experts across the continent to drive progress towards this common goal.

Read related posts on our EDFish blog

How we work

We build many types of partnerships to advance secure fishing rights and co-management in Europe, including:

• Fishermen exchanges, which are valuable, practical learning opportunities for fishermen.
• Membership in regional fisheries advisory councils including the North Sea and Baltic Sea Advisory Councils where our active membership allows us to both listen and contribute to a stakeholder-driven process.
• Partnerships with local experts including John Goodlad, an international fisheries expert based in Scotland, and Peter Olsson, head of the Swedish Fishermen's Producer Organisation, who serve as our industry advisers in the UK and Sweden respectively.
• Discussion groups, government consultation processes, and meetings which provide excellent opportunities for us to present our tools, share learning,and take a pragmatic, solutions-based approach to the challenges ahead.

More on our work in Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the U.K.