Will the European Union soon rid its seas of floating fish factories? That proposal was put forward on September 29, when ocean-protection NGO Bloom published a report calling for the systematic dismantling of large industrial fishing vessels — those longer than 33 metres — by 2035. The group suggests these ships could be repurposed for scientific research or sent to the breakers’ yard.
The idea has political backers in the European Parliament. MEPs from the Greens and the Left, including French representatives David Cormand and Emma Fourreau, have tabled amendments reflecting Bloom’s recommendation in the negotiations over the EU’s next multiannual financial framework, which will steer the bloc’s budget for the coming seven years.
Today, the EU fleet includes 638 fishing vessels exceeding 33 metres. France owns 66 of them, ranking third after Spain and the Netherlands. Bloom labels these vessels “mega-industrial” and argues they no longer perform the basic role of sustainable fishing; instead, they engage in what the NGO calls “counter-fishing,” cutting down the very resource base on which they rely. “They destroy more than they feed,” says Léna Fréjaville, a project coordinator at Bloom and a co-author of the report.
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The notion of “counter-fishing” was developed by activist Claire Nouvian together with philosopher Baptiste Morizot and prominent marine scientist Daniel Pauly, drawing inspiration from thinkers such as Ivan Illich and Leopold Kohr. Kohr, a fierce critic of gigantism and recipient of the alternative Nobel in 1983, argued that systems stop working properly once they grow beyond a certain, humane scale. Bloom set out to determine where that tipping point lies for the fishing industry.
Bloom chose the 33‑metre limit after cross-checking several scientific indicators. Earlier research conducted by scientists at Institut Agro and the National Museum of Natural History had already shown a link between vessel size and socio-economic performance: trawlers of 40 metres and over tend to generate fewer jobs per kilogram of fish landed than vessels under 18 metres, while inflicting greater ecological harm.
The NGO also mapped where boats of different sizes operate. Once vessels exceed an average length of 33 metres, more than half of their catches occur outside European waters — made possible in part by costly fishing access agreements with third countries. “They operate in a logic of globalized predation and externalize the impacts of their activity,” Fréjaville explains.
On average, these giants fish some 4,384 kilometres from their home ports: in the Indian Ocean for tuna, in Arctic waters for cod, and off Latin America for sardinella. Much of this catch is destined for African and Asian markets or is processed into fish oil and fishmeal to feed farmed fish, rather than supplying Europeans’ plates. Bloom and others accuse these distant operations of undermining the food security of certain countries. “You cannot rely on them to guarantee European food sovereignty,” Fréjaville adds.
Vessel size also correlates with the use of highly destructive gear. More than 84% of ships above 33 metres deploy trawls, purse seines or dredges — fishing methods that consume large amounts of energy. Large nets such as seines and trawls are non-selective and tend to capture higher numbers of juvenile fish and vulnerable non-target species, including sharks, rays, turtles and cetaceans. Bottom dredges, trawls and seines physically scour the seafloor, destroying delicate habitats and re-suspending carbon locked in sediments.
By contrast, 83% of vessels under 33 metres use so-called passive or “static” gear — pots, lines or fixed nets — which generally have a lower impact on marine ecosystems.
Although these “mega-industrial” vessels make up only about 1% of the EU fleet, they are responsible for roughly 55% of the Union’s fish landings. Bloom argues that taking them out of service would not only give the ocean a breather but would also be a matter of social justice. “It would mark the end of privileges and of a system that allows a few multinationals to appropriate the wealth,” Fréjaville says.
Some striking examples illustrate the scale of these operations: the Annelies Ilena, whose fishing net is said to span an area comparable to twice the footprint of the Eiffel Tower, and the Maartje Theodora, which measures some 140 metres in length. Eight of the ten largest vessels in Europe belong to the so-called “Big Five,” a group of five Dutch companies that dominate much of European industrial fishing and together harvest around 400 million kilograms of fish each year.
If the largest vessels were dismantled, part of their quotas could be reallocated to small-scale, artisanal fishers who are enduring a deep crisis, Bloom argues. Since 2017, full-time employment in the European fishing sector has fallen by about 25%.
What would become of the cheap products that feed supermarkets — frozen cod, surimi and other low-cost fish largely supplied by these large vessels? “Behind the products produced by these models lies a vast ecological, social and economic destruction,” Fréjaville stresses.
Public health concerns are also raised, notably in the tuna industry: canned tuna is frequently found to be contaminated with mercury. French people currently eat roughly 33 kilograms of seafood per person per year. Didier Gascuel, the researcher who coined the term “pêchécologie” (fishing-ecology), suggests that a return to about 8 kilograms per person annually would be more sustainable for the oceans — in other words, consuming less fish overall but favoring higher-quality products and a greater diversity of species.
Bloom estimates the total cost of dismantling the mega-industrial fleet at around €2.7 billion over seven years, covering compensation for vessel owners and redundancies for seafarers. The NGO describes this figure as “relatively modest” compared with the roughly €5.6 billion that the EU effectively forgoes over a similar period through the exemption of tax on marine diesel. “The cost of emptying the sea, degrading marine habitats and destroying artisanal fishing jobs is also significant,” Fréjaville argues.
The 33‑metre threshold is not intended as a blanket exemption for smaller vessels, the association stresses. The whole sector must transform. Bloom recommends pairing any phase‑out of very large ships with stronger protection for marine protected areas — which are still largely open to extractive activities — and with enhanced coastal zone safeguards.
The proposal still needs to win the support of a majority of elected representatives in Brussels, and quickly: as of July, Bloom notes, some 97% of European waters were classified as “problematic” regarding biodiversity.
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Hi, I’m Ashley from the Decatur Metro team. I share essential information for a sustainable and responsible lifestyle.
