Following an AGRIFISH Council meeting in Brussels, Belgium and the annual ICCAT meeting in Seville, Spain, there was a sharp increase in the bluefin tuna quota for the European Union, and by virtue, Malta, the government said.
Present at this Council meeting were Fisheries Minister Anton Refalo and Parliamentary Secretary Alicia Bugeja Said.
Following negotiations, Malta obtained a 17% increase to its bluefin tuna quota for the next three years, beginning in 2026. This tuna quota is increasing from 434 tonnes to 507 tonnes.
PS Bugeja Said noted that this increase is “a fair achievement for Maltese and Gozitan fishermen who have made sacrifices over the past few years.”
She observed that after the EU negotiated an increase to this tuna quota during the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) meeting in Seville, the European quota had to be negotiated in the Council of Fisheries Ministers to establish the quotas for each respective EU Member State for the next three years.
PS Bugeja Said remarked that through this improved tuna quota, everyone shall benefit: commercial fishermen, amateur fishermen, as well as Maltese and Gozitan consumers.
Minister Refalo argued that the future Common Agricultural Policy should be more flexible to reflect national realities and encouraged innovation and the use of technology. He stressed the need to simplify obligations and control systems, provide stronger support for generational renewal and agricultural holdings, and for support measures, including crisis measures, to be more accessible and adapted to the Maltese context.
Minister Refalo also referred to the fisheries sector, saying that this increased quota is testament to the serious and strong negotiations that Malta is carrying out to safeguard the interests of Maltese and Gozitan fishermen, while maintaining a balance between sustainability and the livelihood of coastal communities.
The Fisheries Ministry stated that for Malta, this Council was very important this year, because of this tuna quota increase for the European Union.