Overcoming the barriers to the uptake of low-impact fishing gear: Solutions from European Maritime Days 2026

On 22 June 2026, ECO-CATCH’s Petri Suuronen (Work Package: Demonstration) from International Seafood Consulting Group (ISCG) presented on ECO-CATCH’s work at European Maritime Days in Cyprus, as part of a Gear to Governance: Sustainable Fish Value-Chain workshop, hosted by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES).

While a considerable amount of research and development is currently going towards the development of innovative fishing gears, the uptake of alternative gears by fisheries remains a challenge. The working session brought together over 40 participants to map the complex barriers hindering the commercial uptake of fishing innovations. Primarily, these barriers were related to operational difficulties, cost, traditions, and regulations.

Together the participants identified a diverse array of potential opportunities for improving the uptake of alternative, low-impact gears, with suggestions including:

Supporting and encouraging fishers to adopt novel gears, by providing resources and training for fishers (particularly for young fishers) in building and operating low-impact gears, and by introducing incentives for transition.
Rebuilding depleted fish stocks so that low-impact fishing becomes economically feasible.
Improving the legislative process, by supporting the legal transition and adoption of low-impact fishing gear by making the legal acceptance process quicker.
Rethinking consumer engagement, by developing systems that inform customers where and with what gear their seafood was caught, and providing a market for fish and other seafood caught using low-impact gears.
Updating regulations to facilitate the use of low-impact gears,by implementing quotas and reserving allocated areas for the use of low-impact gears.

“There is currently an intense debate in many regions about whether fishing could become more sustainable by replacing current fishing gear with low-impact and fuel-efficient gear. In transitioning from one type of fishing gear to another, various trade-offs are almost inevitable, but it is essential that alternative fishing methods offer the opportunity for profitable and sustainable fishing.” – Petri Suuronen, ISCG (Second from the Right)