Mackerel Wars: E.U. and Iceland's Big Fight Over Little Fish

The fight for sustainable food has taken to the high seas once again. Last week, the European Union (E.U.) threatened to take "all necessary measures" to protect its fishing interests in response to Iceland's decision to catch three times as much mackerel as many scientists consider sustainable. If the dispute can't be settled civilly, the ensuing battle could damage other international fishing agreements and the hope for healthy, sustainable fisheries in general.

Celebrated as one of the most sustainable seafood choices by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), mackerel populations in Europe have remained healthy over the past decade, largely due to a quota agreement between the E.U., Norway, and Denmark's Faroe Islands. But now Iceland (ironically considered one of the most sustainable stewards of the sea), along with the Faroe Islands, are insisting that they have the right to increase their mackerel catches to 130,000 tons for Iceland and 85,000 tons for the Faroes. These catch increases threaten to upset the balance of the sea.  If all of the counties involved catch their expected quotas, then 772,000 tons of mackerel will be caught this year, an increase of 35 percent over the 570,000 tons recommended by the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas.

In the past, Iceland and the Faroes have had relatively small catches of mackerel, but as climate change warms water temperatures in the region, the migratory patterns of mackerel have shifted farther north during the summer months. Mackerel are now found and caught in abundance throughout Iceland's 200-mile territorial limit, an exclusive fishing zone established after the "cod wars", a similar dispute fought between England and Iceland. This fish battle got so dirty it included boat-ramming, net-cutting, and even shots being fired (talk about your Deadliest Catch).

Apart from Scottish fisherman blocking Icelandic-caught fish from being unloaded, current threats from the E.U. have been limited to tough trade sanctions, such as preventing imports of mackerel caught by the two countries and blocking their fishing vessels from entering E.U. waters. Hopefully the dispute won't lead to harsh measures used during the cod wars, as they could ruin any opportunity for the two sides to work together to resolve the mackerel battle or establish sustainable quotas for other fish.

And while all eyes seem to be fixed on Iceland and the Faroe Islands to see if they'll back down on their quota increases, the E.U. and Norway should also consider how their actions contributed to the growing tension.  The Icelandic Fishing Vessel Owners Association (LIU) criticized the E.U. and Norway for excluding Iceland from quota negotiations: "There is no comprehensive agreement for the integrated management of the mackerel fishery," the LIU noted. "Norway and the E.U. have seriously undermined the credibility of their own management scheme for more than a decade by unlawfully blocking the participation of Iceland in mackerel negotiations." Looks like years of being left out of the mackerel club may have made Iceland pretty ticked off.

I'd like to believe that Iceland's decision to radically increase its mackerel quota is based on sound, sustainably minded reasoning, especially given the country's responsible track-record. But in this case, it seems that Iceland is looking for more fish without first ensuring that the seas can handle these catch increases. There may be some truth to the claim that the heightened influx of mackerel poses a threat to other marine species if they aren't fished more aggressively, but that type of "conservation" approach requires sound research to back it up before its carried out.

Ultimately, I hope that Iceland will resume its exemplary role for sustainable fishing by dialing back its increased quotas (with the Faroes following in its wake). Otherwise, North East Atlantic mackerel fisheries could see their population numbers dip dangerously low. Let's hope this dispute can be resolved before that occurs. And before any more boat ramming.

In the meantime, ask seafood distributors to make sure that all fish that they sell boast healthy populations and are harvested in an ecologically friendly way. Sign this petition asking Costco to implement a sustainable seafood program and stop stocking threatened fish like orange roughy and Chilean sea bass.

Photo Credit: AndyRob