REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL Results of the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1093/94 setting the terms under which fishing vessels of a third country may land directly and market their catches at Community ports
Date: 1996-06-17
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: application of EU law, fishery product, harbour installation, marketing, third country

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

Brussels,  17.06.1996 
COM(%) 272 final 

REPORT  FROM  THE COMMISSION  TO THE  COUNCIL 

Results  of  the  application  of  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  1093/94  setting  the  terms 

under which  fishing  vessels  of  a third country  may  land  directly  and market  their 

catches  at Community ports. 

CONTENTS 

Preamble 

I. 

Background  to  Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94 

A.  Market  situation  and  objectives  of the  Regulation 

B. 

C. 

Situation  with regard to direct  landings  in  some other  countries 

Compatibility  of  Regulation  (EC)  No  1093/94  with  the  Community's 

international  commitments: 

- WTO 

-EEA 

II 

Results  of the application  of Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94 

A. 

B. 

C. 

D. 

Organization  of health checks 

Landing  statement 

Compliance  with marketing  rules 

Quantities  involved 

E. 

General 

Conclusion 

Annex:  statistics 

Article 8 of Council Regulation (EC) No  1093/94 of 6 May  1994 setting the terms under 

which  fishing  vessels  of  a third  country  may  land  directly  and  market  their  catches  at 
Community  ports1  lays down that 

"Before  1 July  1996, the Commission  shall submit to the Council  a report on the results 

of the application of this Regulation, accompanied, if need be, by appropriate proposals." 

This  report  has  been  drawn  up  in  response  to this  instruction,  on  the  basis  of  Member 

States' replies to a Commission questionnaire on the application of the various provisions 

of the  Regulation  from  its entry  into force  up to 31 December  1995. 

Eight Member States replied to the questionnaire, four of them reporting direct landings. 

The  figures  sent  to  the  Commission  with  Member  States'  replies  are  contained  in  the 

Annex. 

Before  actually examining the results of the application of Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94, 

the Commission considers it would be useful to outline the background and the objectives 

which  led  to  the  adoption  of the  Regulation  and  thus place  it  in  its  international  legal 

context. 

OJNoL  121,  12.5.1994, p. 3. 

I. 

The  background  to  Regulation  ( EO  No  1093/94 

Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94 was adopted  against  the background  of a major  crisis on  the 
Community  market  in  fishery  products,  to  prevent  certain  practices  liable  to  disrupt  a 
vulnerable  market, 

in  the  absence  of  international  legislation  on  direct  landings. 

A. 

Market  situation  and  the  objectives  of  the  Regulation 

The  crisis  situation  at  the  beginning  of  1993  on  the  Community  market  in  fishery 
products, affecting  the  main  white  fish  species  in particular,  was diagnosed  and  analysed 
in  depth  by  the  Commission2  and  also  by  the  Member  States  and  trade  circles.  It  forced 
prices  down  on  a  market  which  was  very  sensitive  to  various  cyclical  factors. 

In  such  a  context,  it  is  evident  that  direct  landings  by  vessels  of  non-member  countries, 
in the  absence  of appropriate  legislation,  present  a serious  risk  that  new disturbances  will 
be  triggered  by  the  introduction  to the  market  of  very  low-priced  fish  competing  directly 
with  Community  production  on  the  fresh  fish  market  and,  above  all,  threaten  to 
undermine  market  management  measures  taken  by  producers'  organizations,  with  the 
support  of  Community  or  national  budgets. 

Direct  landings  involve  fish  being  imported  by  a  fishing  vessels  which  is  not  only  the 
means  of  transport  but  also  the  means  by  which  the  fish  was  caught.  Such  a practice,  on 
the  one  hand,  avoids  all  controls  by  the  authorities  of  the  country  of  origin  of  the 
products  and,  on  the  other  hand,  saves  on  transport,  inspection,  packing  and  even  fiscal 
and  parafiscal  costs  as  compared  with  other  means  of  transport  (whether  by  sea,  air  or 
land).  Direct  landings  are  therefore  liable  to  lead  to  situations  of  unfair  competition  in 
relation  to  Community  production. 

Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94  was thus adopted  by the Council, acting  on a proposal  from 
landings  subject  to  certain 
the  Commission, 
requirements  being  met  and  under  conditions  which  were  no  less  stringent  than  those 
applying  to  Community  production. 

to  authorize  the  principle  of  direct 

These  conditions  relate  to  the  following: 

drawing  up  a  list  of  authorized  ports  which  have  facilities  for  carrying  out  the 
requisite  health  checks,  whereas  previously  there  were  no  restrictions  except 
national  ones  on  access  to  ports  of  fishing  vessels  of  non-member  countries 
(Article  3); 

the  submission  to  the  competent  authorities  of  a  statement  by  the  master  of  the 
vessel  concerning  the  origin  and  quantities  of  products  (Article  4); 

See  communication  on  the  crisis  in  the  Community's  fishing  industry  (COM(94)  335  final, 
19.7.1994). 

the  obligation,  in  the  case  of  disposal  of  fresh  fish,  to  comply  with  any  rules 
decided  on and  implemented  in the  area  of activity  of  a producers'  organization 
(Article 5). 

These  rules  can  be  regarded  as  quite  liberal  compared  with  those  in  force  in  some 
countries. 

B. 

Situation with  regard to direct landings  in some  other  countries 

On a general note, it should be mentioned that the United Nations Convention on the Law 
of  the  Sea  expressly  recognizes  the. right  of  coastal  states  to  regulate  unilaterally 
conditions of access to their inshore waters and port facilities; and no distinction  is made 
between  fishing  vessels  as the  means of transport  of their  own  catches  and  other  cargo 
vessels  used  for  commercial  purposes. 
The following  are a few  examples of the legislation  on direct  landings  in force  in some 
countries: 

USA: 
Australia: 
Canada: 

Chile: 

ban 
ban, except  with ministerial  authorization 
authorization  on a case by case basis for  vessels flying  the flag  of 
countries  with which Canada has good fisheries relations 
health  certificate  required  from  the  competent  authority  in  the 
country  of  origin  for  any  goods,  even  those  in  transit,  entering 
Chile, regardless  of the access route. 

In  such a context  the legislation  adopted by the  Community  does not  appear to be open 
to dispute and has indeed  not been disputed,  in particular  from  the point of view of the 
Community's  international  commitments. 

C. 

Compatibility  of  Regulation  (EO  No  1093/94  with  the  Community's 
international  commitments 

Regulation (EC) No  1093/94 does not disregard the rules in force  in connection  with the 
WTO, nor does it apply to vessels flying the flag of countries or groups of countries with 
which the Community has concluded an agreement dealing expressly with direct landings, 
which  is the case  only  for  the Agreement  on the  European  Economic  Area. 

WTO 

Regulation  (EC)  No  1093/94  does  not  impose  discriminatory  conditions  on  vessels  of 
non-Community  countries  making  direct  landings  as  compared  with  Community 
production. On the contrary, its purpose is to subject such vessels to equivalent conditions 
to those which apply to Community production with regard to the landing and marketing 
of fishery  products. 

The  compatibility  of  Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94 with  the  1994  GATT  rules  was  not 
called  into question  when the  WTO was established  on  1 January  1995. 

European  Economic  Area  (EEA) 

Regulation  (EC)  No  1093/94  is  not  applicable  to  vessels  flying  the  flags  of  countries 
which  are  signatories  of  the  EEA  Agreement  since  Article  5  of  Protocol  9  to  the 
Agreement  expressly  regulates  the question  of access to ports  by  fishing  vessels. 
The  Regulation  does, however,  apply  to all  other countries. 

European  Economic  Area (EEA) 

Regulation  (EC)  No  1093/94  is  not  applicable  to  vessels  flying  the  flags  of  countries 
which  are  signatories  of  the  EEA  Agreement  since  Article  5  of  Protocol  9  to  the 
Agreement  expressly  regulates the question  of access to ports  by fishing  vessels. 
The Regulation  does, however,  apply to all  other countries. 

IL 

Results  of the  application  of Regulation  (EO  No 1093/94 

It is difficult  to speak of "results" in the strict sense of the application of Regulation (EC) 
No  1093/94 since the  measures in question  are essentially  of a preventive  nature,  so no 
quantifiable  effect  can be expected. 

The Regulation therefore needs to be looked at rather from the angle of its general impact 
and  any  difficulties  of  application. 

The three main provisions of the Regulation are dealt with separately below, followed  by 
some  general points. 

A. 

Organization  of health  checks  (Article 3) 

The list of authorized ports sent in to the Commission by each of the Member States was 
published in the C series of the Official  Journal on 28 May  1994, followed  by the Finnish 
and  Swedish  lists on 29 December  1994. 

None of the Member  States reported  any  difficulties  in this  connection. 

It  emerged  from  the  actual  health  checks  carried  out  that  the  standards  in  force  were 
generally  met  during  the  reference  period;  rejections  for  non-compliance  were  the 
exception  (one case  in Denmark  and one in France, both  involving  small  quantities). 

B. 

Landing  statement  (Article 4) 

No  particular  problems  with  this  were  reported;  some  Member  States  underlined  the 
advantage  of this procedure,  without  which  no checks or action  on  infringement  would 
be possible. 

One Member State expressed the view that the time limit for prior notification  (72 hours) 
sometimes  seemed  excessive,  but  this  rule derives  from  Regulation  (EEC)  No  2874/93 
establishing a control  system  and does not therefore  relate specifically  to direct  landings 
by fishing vessels  of non-Community  countries. 

C. 

Compliance with  marketing  rules (Article 5) 

Only  those  quantities  intended  for  direct  marketing  required  to  meet  certain  marketing 
requirements. 

In actual  fact  these  quantities  are marginal,  except  in  Spain,  since  most  direct  landings 
involve fish intended  for  processing  and  are not therefore  covered  by this provision; 

No Member  State reported  difficulties  in implementing  this provision. 

D. 

Quantities  involved 

The table in the Annex shows the quantities reported by five Member States for the years 
1994 and  1995. The  figures  are therefore  incomplete. 

The quantities concerned  are mainly concentrated  in two Member  States - Denmark  and 
Spain  - plus  some in  Germany  and France. 
Almost all the direct landings in the northern ports, including France, are intended  for the 
processing  industry  and  involve  large tonnages  of a small  number  of species. 

As regards  Spain, the  majority  of direct  landings  are in the  Canary  Islands  and  involve 
a  large variety  of  fresh  and  frozen  products, mainly  for  direct  marketing. 

Between  1994 and  1995 there was a marked decrease in the tonnage landed in Germany, 
Denmark  and  France  and  an increase  in the case of Spain. 

It can also be said that in all cases the number of landings decreased  substantially, while 
the  average  quantity  per  landing  increased  markedly.  It  should  be  pointed  out  that  the 
figures relate to only  two years and cannot therefore  be regarded  as very  significant. 

E. 

General 

Most  of  the  Member  States  which  replied  to  the  Commission  questionnaire  expressed 
satisfaction  with the existence and implementation of Regulation (EC) No 1093/94. There 
were no suggestions for amendments or improvements. No difficulties  of application were. 
mentioned. 

CONCLUSION 

Of the eight Member States which replied to the Commission questionnaire, two said they 
were still opposed  to the principle of the Regulation, four  said they were pleased  with it, 
and two made  no particular  comment. 

Generally  speaking,  having  regard  to the  small  amount  of  information  supplied  by  the 
Member  States, the  Commission finds it  difficult  to  make  an  overall  assessment  of the 
implementation  of  Regulation  (EC) No  1093/94.  Several  Member  States  failed  to  reply 
at all to the Commission and those that did supply information  made no mention  of how 
often  or what  kinds of checks  were carried  out to implement  the  Regulation. 

On this  point,  therefore,  the  Commission  would  refer  to  the  comments  it  makes  in  the 
parallel  report  to  the  Council  on  the  monitoring  of  fishing  vessels  of  other  countries 
operating  in the Community fishing area,  which it undertook  to produce at the  Council 
meeting  in  December. 

It can  state the  following,  however: 

The measures  in question  are  generally  perceived  as having  a positive  impact. 

No  particular  disadvantages  have  come  to  light  as  regards  administration  or 
market  supply  and  operation. 

No action has been taken by a non-Community  country, nor have any comments 
been  received  since the  measure  entered  into  force. 

The Commission would also point out that one of the main attributes of Regulation  (EC) 
No  1093/94  is that  it  is a preventive  measure, and  if  it did  not  exist, the  market  would 
probably  be adversely  affected. 

Lastly,  the  Commission  would  point  out  that  it  has  always  taken  the  view  that  the 
question of direct landings ought to be dealt with on a multilateral international  basis and 
that  in  that  connection  it  is important  to  have  an  internal  legal  instrument  serving  as a 
reference  point  for  future  international  negotiations, to  show the role the Community  is 
playing  in ensuring  responsible  fishing  without  undermining  the principle  of  free  trade. 
It  is  symptomatic  of  the  situation  that  some  states,  particularly  coastal  states,  wish  to 
open  the  debate  in  some  regional  marine  resource  management  organizations  on  the 
possibility  of  prohibiting  landings  by  fishing  vessels  of  non-contracting  parties  not 
observing the management and conservation rules laid down by those organizations. This 
approach  needs  to  be  addressed  in  the  context  of  the  code  of  conduct  on  responsible 
fishing  and also the United Nations Agreement on straddling stocks and highly migratory 
species. The Commission  will present  guidelines to the Council  on this matter at a later 
date. 

In the  light  of  the  foregoing,  the  Commission  takes  the  view  that  there  are  no  grounds 
for  amending  Regulation  (EC)  No  1093/94  by  either  restricting  or expanding  its  scope. 
It will  not  therefore  be  putting any  such proposal  to the Council  but rather  recommends 
maintaining  the  status quo. 

Annex: Quantity  (tonnes)  and  number  of vessels  involved  in direct  landings  (figures  for  1995  provisional) 

Germany 

Denmark 

Spain 

France 

Greece 

Total 

Q 

1994 

1928 

1995 

536 

N 

286 

56 

Q 

N 

Q 

48157 

5889 

43449 

25642 

1818 

67854 

N 

623 

428 

Q 

9892 

4733 

N 

11 

8 

Q 

N 

}30' 

}20' 

Q 
103426 

N 

6809 

98795 

2310 

1 

for  the two  years. 

10 

ISSN  0254-1475 

COM(96) 272  final 

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