CFP Evaluation: A signal for change on burden reduction and aquaculture

As part of the European Ocean Pact, on 30 April 2026, the European Commission published its evaluation of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) Regulation, covering the decade from 2014 to 2024.

The evaluation acknowledges that expanded monitoring and reporting requirements generate additional costs across the fishing sector, and that efficiency depends strongly on how Member States implement the rules, with fragmented or uneven application reducing cost-effectiveness. The Commission points to simplification and digitalisation as ways forward, but progress remains slow.

We find that a leaner and more harmonised regulatory framework is long overdue for the fishing sector to reduce unnecessary administrative burdens.

Equally important is the picture painted of aquaculture. The evaluation notes that production has been stagnating, and that the sector faces issues of generational renewal due to administrative burdens. Given that EFFOP members depend on sustainable fish supplies – also from aquaculture – for fishmeal and fish oil production, a thriving EU aquaculture sector is very much in our interest, and the Commission’s findings make a compelling case for stronger and more targeted support.

The evaluation will feed into the Commission’s 2040 Vision for Fisheries and Aquaculture, and EFFOP will follow this process closely.

For more information: Commission evaluation shows slow progress in fishing sustainability and on-going challenges for EU fishers