The EU is about to issue a comprehensive ban on Russian aquatic product imports, and the industry is increasingly worried

The European Commission is contemplating additional trade sanctions against Russia, which may include a ban on fish imports, following concerns about Russia's environmental and fair trade practices in the fish and seafood industry. This proposal has received support from the Group of Seven (G7) leaders. However, such a ban could significantly impact the European processing industry, which is expected to process around $955 million of Russian aquatic products in 2023, primarily cod and pollock fillets. The final decision on these sanctions is pending, despite potential economic repercussions. Meanwhile, Russia remains a significant supplier of fish fillets to Germany and the United States.

According to the German newspaper Die Welt on July 24, the European Commission plans to continue discussing further trade sanctions against Russia, including a possible fish ban, after the summer. On January 1 this year, the European Commission removed Russian fish from the 0% autonomous tariff quota (ATQ) program. Currently, cod fillets from Russia or processed in China already face a 13.7% tariff. Previously, the Group of Seven (G7) issued a statement after the June 18 meeting in Italy, expressing concerns about Russia's environmentally unfriendly and unfair practices in fish and seafood trade. The statement was signed by the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. The European processing industry is under tremendous pressure. According to UCN estimates, about $955 million of Russian aquatic products will enter Europe for further processing in 2023, of which the largest product category is cod and pollock fillets .At the same ...