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Fishing
in Spain

Fishing is an important sector in Spain, it’s an economic engine. Its work helps to give structure and promote the economic development of the area in which it operates. Therefore, now more than ever, the Spanish fishing industry needs to be claimed and defended.


In the European Union, Spain is the leading country in terms of fish and seafood catches made by the Spanish fleet, representing 28% of the total fishing value and more than 16.3% of total catches, according to the latest data available in Europe (2019).

La importancia de los océanos

Aparte de ser una fuente fundamental de proteínas para gran parte de la población mundial, los océanos también son una gran fuente para la economía, especialmente para países en vías de desarrollo que dependen del océano.

Fishing in Spain

Fuente de Oxígeno

El océano produce más de la mitad del oxígeno que respiramos gracias al fitoplancton que contiene, estos funcionan como pequeñas plantas, que al igual que las terrestres, a través de la fotosíntesis consumen CO2 y producen oxígeno.

Fishing in Spain
Fishing in Spain

Lucha contra el cambio climático

Además, el océano es el principal mecanismo disponible para la lucha contra el cambio climático, ya que regula nuestro clima, absorbiendo calor y transportando agua fría de los polos a los trópicos y tibia del ecuador a los polos. Además, absorbe CO2 para mantener el ciclo del carbono y regula lluvias y sequías para mantener las temperaturas de la tierra en equilibrio.

Fishing in Spain

Marine life and different species

Currently, there are around 230,000 known species underwater, but it is estimated that as many as 540,000 may exist. This shows how little is truly known about sea life and the opportunities presented by the organisms and micro-organisms that inhabit our oceans that we do not yet know about, especially in habitats such as abyssal plains and ocean trenches.

The species that have been caught by wild fishing can be divided into three main groups:

Fishing in Spain
Fishing in Spain
Fishing in Spain

Fish

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Fishing in Spain

Mollusks and crustaceans

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Fishing in Spain

Cephalopods and other species

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Fishing activity

Fishing in Spain

Fleet

The Spanish fleet is made up of a total of 8,657 fishing boats, as of 2021, ranking third in Europe after Greece (14,550) and Italy (12,179). 

Fishing in Spain

Operations

The vast majority of boats operate in the national fishing area, in four main zones: Cantabrian and Northwest, the Mediterranean, the Gulf of Cadiz and the Canary Islands. They also operate in EU waters or international fishing grounds, as well as others belonging to the unified census of surface long-liners, which fish in Spanish, EU and third country waters, as well as on the high seas.

The figures of the industry

fishing boats in Spain

of the ships operate in national waters

of the total catches in the European Union

tonnes of fish and seafood in 2021

Management and control of the activity

Sustainability, understood from an environmental, social, and economic point of view, is part of the sector’s DNA and is a constant focus in order to ensure its future viability.

 

There is both a European and national control on the undertaking of the fishing sector that regulates and enforces compliance:

Fishing in Spain

Brussels regulates the fishing governance, based on scientific data and catch landings, establishing different quotas and allocations per country.

 

They also draw up the funds and general guidelines for their administration, these are the main sources of finance for technological improvements in many of our fleets. In order to have access to them, there are a series of standards to be met in terms of food quality, the environment, safety, etc.

The EU also encourages a collaborative approach and the transfer of knowledge based on the creation of regional organizations for a better functioning of the fleets. This is why organizations of various scales such as Fisheries Producers’ Organizations (FPOs) or Local Fisheries Action Groups (LFAGs) have been created.

Fishing in Spain
Fishing in Spain

The only European fisheries control agency, EFCA, is located in Vigo, demonstrating once again the importance of fisheries in Spain (and in Galicia and Vigo, in particular). In addition, there are different national and regional bodies for the control of fisheries, involving the Guardia Civil, the coastguard, the national fisheries inspection body, etc.

Innovation

In recent years there has been a significant technological leap in fishing vessels with new systems that:

Have improved connectivity. Nowadays, in the majority of Spanish ships, the sailors can stay in contact with their families from their cabins, helping to deal with homesickness. 

Have led to a significant increase in on-board safety and adopting new occupational risk protocols that have led to a drastic reduction in on-board accidents.

Fishing in Spain