Update on IUU Nations Carded by European Commission

On October 1, the European Commission issued the nation of Taiwan a ‘yellow card’ as a warning that the Commission wants to see time-bound improvements in their anti-illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing governance. This European Union system issues ‘yellow cards’ and ‘red cards’ to nations that have not taken sufficient action to control IUU activity in their waters or by their flagged vessels. The European Commission states that this decision is based on “serious shortcomings in the fisheries legal framework, a system of sanctions that does not deter IUU fishing, and lack of effective monitoring, control and surveillance of the long-distance fleet. Furthermore, Taiwan does not systematically comply with Regional Fisheries Management Organization (RFMO) obligations.” If Taiwan fails to make anti-IUU improvements within six months, the Commission could issue them a red card, which can lead to European Union trade and economic sanctions.The United States is the second largest buyer of Taiwanese seafood exports behind Japan, but is the largest buyer of the nation’s fish fillets. Seafood caught in the high seas such as tuna and mahi-mahi land in Taiwan before being exported into U.S. retail markets. There are currently no U.S. trade sanctions based on the European Commission’s IUU card system, but the issuance of a yellow card places international pressure on Taiwan to make anti-IUU improvements throughout its fishing fleet. Read our blog to learn more about the current status of IUU nations that have been ‘carded’ by the European Commission.