There's Something Fishy About Our Seafood
4 min read
UK Border checks are failing to spot illegal catches.
In recent years, there has been a near-total end to critical checks to ensure the legality of seafood imported to the UK. Much of our capacity to scrutinise these imports at the border has been lost.
As a result, it is near guaranteed that a significant proportion of the seafood we eat is the product of illegal fishing, which is driving environmental destruction and human rights abuses. It’s time for the government to bolster our defences against illegal seafood.
Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing is a problem that plagues nearly every ocean on Earth. Estimated to be worth between $10bn and $23.5bn every year, it drives fish populations to collapse, and often involves shark finning and the killing of endangered species. IUU fishing is not just an environmental crime; it goes hand-in-hand with the exploitation and abuse of vulnerable crew. Left unchecked, it undermines food security for billions worldwide, threatens global stability, and erodes fair trade.
Too often, the British public are in the dark about the origin of their seafood. People deserve to know that the fish they are buying is not tainted by the pillaging of our oceans and forced, bonded or even slave labour. Hard-working and law-abiding British fishermen and women also deserve a level playing field when they sell their produce at home, rather than being undercut by cheap, illegal imports.
A new report by the Coalition for Fisheries Transparency, based on Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) investigations and data from UK authorities, finds that in 2024 more than a quarter of UK seafood imports came from countries that are internationally recognised as the worst-offending states for IUU fishing, including Russia and China.
Before leaving the EU, the UK monitored and reported on measures to keep out seafood caught via IUU fishing, including the verification of catch certificates (documents required for nearly all seafood imports). But, despite promises made during Brexit debates, the previous government failed to ensure that border checks would continue properly – and certificate verifications declined threefold, reaching near-zero levels.
This has left the UK in a deeply vulnerable position; at risk of being targeted by criminals looking to exploit these weak points and dump their illegal catches on our shores. Armed with the powerful evidence from EJF’s investigations, the current government has a chance to correct that.
We have an under-used weapon in our arsenal: an ability to issue warnings and sanction countries that fail to tackle IUU fishing. The EU successfully operates a ‘carding system’, issuing so-called yellow cards – trade sanction warnings – and, for extreme cases, red cards that block market access to such countries. This has consistently delivered results, motivating states around the world to crack down on illegal fishing.
While we have maintained restrictions on seafood imports from states that were red-carded at the time of Brexit, since then we have not used them ourselves. Yet the UK already has the legal framework to implement such a system. We could either determine our own carding decisions or mirror those made by the EU – either way, it would send a clear message that the UK does not accept illegal fishing.
Cheap, illegal imports aren’t just bad for the environment – they’re bad for business and bad for people. Fishing communities at home suffer when we import fish from countries where illegal practices are routine and abusive working practices mean prices are artificially suppressed. It’s a reminder that action to ensure environmental sustainability can mean fairer markets and a stronger domestic industry.
Now that we have a government focused on revitalising our coastal communities, let’s start by restoring and enhancing our border checks, and implementing the Global Charter for Fisheries Transparency, a set of 10 no- or low-cost policy principles designed to bring the global fishing industry out of the shadows.
By showing leadership at home, the UK can play a role in ending the illegal seafood trade and its devastating effects.
