Today’s consumers are increasingly aware of the origin and safety of food products. To accommodate this, the European Community introduced on January 1 2010 a new regulation, IUU (illegal, unreported, unregulated), to prevent illegally harvested seafood into the EU.

All major seafood exporting countries have decided to implement the above requirement and have informed the EU accordingly.

All harvested seafood products now have to carry a label that guarantees they were obtained responsibly and without harming the marine medium. A catch certifi cate provided by the vessel operator or seafood exporter must accompany every shipment entering the EU, and has to be validated and countersigned by a government authority.

The implementation of a traceability process provides an array of benefits to the fi shing industry. These benefi ts include improved supply chain management, documentation of sustainable management practices and easier compliance with labelling laws.