The 29th session of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC), held in La Réunion from 13 to 17 April 2025, concluded with the adoption of a full management framework for tropical tunas. This is a key step which will allow now to focus on other tuna species and control measures, in order to ensure a minimum level playing field between the different fleet within the Indian Ocean. Europêche calls on all IOTC parties and stakeholders to implement and enforce the adopted measures as soon as possible, as well as to begin addressing management needs for other tuna and associated species.

The control rule on margin of tolerance is currently incompatible with the conditions and specificities inherent to the fishing operations in the tropical tuna purse seine fishery. Crushed by heavy sanctions, EU tuna vessels operating in the Indian and Atlantic Oceans might disappear in the very near future.

Europêche

Europêche, the leading trade body representing the fishing industry in Europe, strengthens its team to boost the organisation’s support for sustainable tuna fishing and to promote the voice of the sector in wider EU and international decision making. Newly founded Europêche’s tuna group will advocate the interests of the EU and associated tuna freezer purse-seine fleet to enhance business competitiveness, improve the image of the sector, contribute to sustainable ocean governance, support the fight against IUU and labour abuse, and achieve an international level playing field.