Commission staff working document - accompanying the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council - Building a sustainable future for aquaculture - A new impetus for the Strategy for the Sustainable Development of European Aquaculture - Summary of the impact assessment {COM(2009) 162 final} {SEC(2009) 453}
Date: 2009-04-08
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU programme, aquaculture, common fisheries policy, health control, human nutrition, sea fish, sustainable development

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 8.4.2009 
SEC(2009) 454 

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 

accompanying the 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO  
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL 

Building a sustainable future for aquaculture 

A new impetus for the Strategy for the Sustainable Development of European 
Aquaculture 

SUMMARY OF THE IMPACT ASSESSMENT  

{COM(2009) 162 final} 
{SEC(2009) 453} 

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

In  2002,  the  European  Commission  presented  a  Communication  on  a  Strategy  for  the 
sustainable development of European aquaculture1, which was the first to put the aquaculture 
industry  at  the  forefront  at  European  level.  In  2007,  DG  MARE  (formerly  DG  FISH)  took 
stock of progress made so far. Based on this evaluation, and in view of the fact that one of the 
main objectives set in 2002 in terms of jobs and production growth had not been achieved, the 
Commission  launched  a  broad  consultation  and  debate  with  all  stakeholders  on  the 
opportunities and challenges facing European aquaculture. 

During this consultation and assessment period, a number of issues were identified and these 
are  developed  in  this  document.  The  2002  objectives  of  providing  safe  aquatic  food  from 
aquaculture, while guaranteeing animal health and welfare, and of ensuring that aquaculture is 
regulated  have  generally  been  achieved.  However,  the  general  problem  identified  is  the 
overall  stagnation  of  EU  aquaculture  in  terms  of  production  since  the  beginning  of  the 
millennium,  against  continued  growth  in  this  industry  at  global  level.  The  EU  aquaculture 
sector benefits from numerous assets and is a leader in technological innovation and research, 
but  it  also  faces  a  number  of  problems.  The  main  factors  referred  to  include  the  overall 
economic  outlook  of  EU  aquaculture,  notably  competition  with  imports,  the  structure  and 
industrial  features  of  the  EU  aquaculture  business,  combined  with  the  challenges  of  EU 
aquaculture  vis-à-vis  environmental  protection  requirements,  the  need  to  overcome  space 
limitation and competition for access to water, and the challenges of ensuring high levels of 
animal health and welfare. This consultation raised the importance of industry needs-oriented 
research  within  this  new  area  of  animal  domestication,  but  it  also  highlighted  additional 
problems, such as the lack of sufficient awareness of aquaculture and the attendant impact on 
its  image,  the  need  for  better  governance  through  communication  and  involvement  of 
stakeholders, and also the need for a level playing field and a reduction in the administrative 
burden. 

To address the issues raised during the consultation, three broad options are considered in this 
document. 

The  first  option  identified  was  the  status-quo  scenario,  i.e.  taking  no  specific  initiative  and 
keeping within the confines of the strategy developed in 2002. This option would also mean 
taking a “business as usual” approach when developing the numerous policy areas that may 
have an impact on aquaculture, and continuing with an objective set in 2002 in terms of job 
creation that is known not to be being achieved.  

The  second  option  was  to  consider  reiterating  the  type  of  initiative  taken  in  2002  and 
proposing a renewed strategy for the sustainable development of EU aquaculture. This would 
mean  developing  a  Communication  on  political  guidance,  defining  strategic  objectives  and 
identifying proposals for possible further action within the various policy domains of interest. 
Under this option, several possibilities were further envisaged, namely assessing the value of 
keeping or reviewing certain strategic objectives  defined in 2002, and identifying action for 
all  stakeholders  or  only  action  that  would  fall  under  the  responsibility  of  the  public 
authorities.  The  possibility  of  accompanying  this  political  Communication  with  possible 
proposals  for  specific  “aquaculture-oriented”  amendments  to  the  Community  financial 

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COM(2002) 511. 

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support  instrument  (European  Fisheries  Fund  –  EFF),  to  act  as  a  possible  lever  to  reinforce 
some  dimensions  of  the  strategy,  was  looked  at  during  this  assessment  exercise.  This  sub-
option  was  not  retained  for  proportionality  and  timing  considerations,  and  because  of  other 
assessments  anticipated  in  the  near  term  (ex  post  evaluation  of  the  Financial  Instrument  for 
Fisheries Guidance to begin in 2009)2. 

The last option envisaged was to fundamentally change the approach by setting the basis for a 
comprehensive  “Common  EU  Aquaculture  Policy”,  by  way  of  a  multi-faceted  legislative 
framework somewhere between the Common Fisheries Policy (which would cover fisheries-
related issues only) and the Common Agriculture Policy, which would also mean developing 
production targets at EU level. This latter option was discarded rather rapidly as it would be at 
variance with the principle of subsidiarity in a number of aspects. 

The  actual  development  of  an  industry  cannot simply  be  dictated  by  public  powers,  but  the 
public  authorities  do  have  a  significant  role  to  play  in  establishing  the  conditions  and  the 
framework in which an industry can – or cannot – develop. This analysis concluded that these 
challenges should be addressed from the point of view of the role of the public authorities in 
the EU, including at national and regional levels, since they are still responsible for a number 
of factors which greatly influence the development of aquaculture (e.g. licensing and spatial 
planning).  Given  the  numerous  EU  policies  that  have  an  influence  on  aquaculture 
development, a coordinated approach under a common vision was deemed appropriate. Above 
all, though, this assessment highlighted the value of a new impetus for the EU aquaculture – 
through  a  political  Communication  from  the  Commission  to  update  the  2002  strategy  and 
adapt it to new circumstances, refocus some of its strategic objectives (with more emphasis on 
competitiveness  and  improved  governance)  and  provide  EU  leadership  in  support  of  this 
industry. 

The aim is therefore to provide a new impetus for the strategy for the sustainable development 
of  European  aquaculture  by  addressing  the  role  of  the  public  authorities  in  establishing  an 
appropriate framework for the sustainable development of aquaculture in Europe and helping 
to remove a number of bottlenecks to allow this industry to develop its full potential. It will 
however only deliver in full if it is further endorsed by the Member States and also translates 
into concrete action at regional and local level.  

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However,  this  is  without  prejudice  to  any  future  decision  to  review  financial  support  for  this  EU 
business  in  the  current  financial  crisis  and  in  the  light  of  the  debate  at  the  European  Summit  in 
December 2008. 

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