North-East Atlantic coastal states reach agreement on mackerel, blue whiting and Atlanto-Scandian herring TACs for 2022

At a meeting in London, the delegations of the European Union, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation and the United Kingdom reached an agreement on the management measures for mackerel, blue whiting and Atlanto-Scandian herring in the North-East Atlantic for 2022. All three stocks have a total allowable catch (TAC) for 2022 set according to the scientific advice provided by the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (ICES). 

For mackerel, the coastal States agreed to set the TAC for 2022 at 794,920 tonnes. This TAC is in line with ICES advice, following the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) approach and is 7% lower than the TAC agreed for 2021.

For blue whiting, the TAC for 2022 was agreed at 752,736 tonnes (19% lower than for 2021) and for Atlanto-Scandian herring the TAC for 2022 was agreed at 598,588 tonnes (8% lower than for 2021). The agreed TAC levels are in line with the long-term management strategies and follow the ICES MSY advice.

All parties recognised the need to reach an agreement on quota-sharing arrangements for all three stocks and, therefore, agreed to engage in further work on the matter as early as possible.

The delegations also agreed to establish three working groups to analyse and report on the stock and catch distribution of these stocks in the North-East Atlantic.

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Northern agreements