The countries — Belize, Cambodia and Guinea — have not done enough to curb illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The 24 March ban means that European Union member countries cannot accept seafood from those countries, nor can E.U. vessels fish in those nations' waters.
"These decisions are historic. They demonstrate that the EU is leading by example in the fight against illegal fishing," said Maria Damanaki, commissioner for maritime affairs and fisheries. "I hope that this blacklisting will act as a catalyst for Belize, Cambodia, and Guinea to step up their efforts and work with the international community to eliminate illegal fishing."
In 2012, Damanaki issued a warning to the three countries and eight others, but in a 2013 statement, Damanaki said Belize, Cambodia and Guinea all showed little progress in addressing the issue.
Four environmental groups — Oceana, the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), the Pew Charitable Trusts and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) all issued a joint statement praising the ban.
"Closing the world's most valuable seafood market to countries that do not cooperate in fighting illegal fishing is a crucial step, and we applaud the EU for taking this decision," said Steve Trent, EJF's executive director.
In the statement, the groups estimated IUU fishing costs between EUR 7 billion and EUR 17 billion annually.
"The EU's efforts to tackle IUU fishing worldwide have truly materialized today with this unprecedented step," said Maria José Cornax, fisheries campaign manager at Oceana. "We hope that fishing nations around the world are looking today at the EU's leadership, and are ready to follow this newly opened path towards the definitive elimination of IUU fishing."
The initial 2012 warning went out to Belize, Cambodia, Fiji, Guinea, Panama, Sri Lanka, Togo and Vanuatu. The commission engaged in dialogue with the countries concerned, and gave them time to remedy the situation. The commission later found that Fiji, Panama, Sri Lanka, Togo and Vanuatu had taken sufficient steps to address IUU fishing.
"There must be consequences for persistent inaction after repeated warnings," said Eszter Hidas, E.U. policy lead for WWF's transparent seas project. "We expect that Belize, Cambodia and Guinea will now take immediate action to impose effective fishing regulations."
Now, the groups and the commission will be turning their attention to three other countries — Curaçao, Ghana, and South Korea — which also got a warning in November 2013.
"The Council, by adopting this red list on non-compliant countries, has achieved a milestone in fighting illegal fishing," said Tony Long, director of the ending illegal fishing project at Pew Charitable Trusts. "This shows that the European Union is serious about confronting countries that do not stop illegal fishing or continue to trade in illegally caught fish."
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) A project titled "Sustainable Shrimp Industry Governance" has been launched in Ca Mau Province with the aim of supporting the transition of the province's shrimp industry toward higher quality, lower emissions, stronger governance capacity, improved supply chain traceability, and the development of a sustainable shrimp brand that meets the increasingly stringent requirements of export markets.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Khanh Hoa Provincial Agricultural Extension Center, in collaboration with the Northern Center for Marine Aquaculture Research and the Van Hung Public Service Center, recently organized a training course on disease-free golden pompano seed production. The program is part of a National Agricultural Extension Project aimed at developing industrial-scale seed production models to support sustainable marine aquaculture.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Vietnam’s pangasius exports have shown encouraging signs of recovery in 2026. In the first four months of the year, total export turnover reached USD 720 million, up 17% compared to the same period last year. This result reflects improving demand across many markets, as well as the efforts of Vietnamese pangasius enterprises to maintain production, secure orders, and adapt to changing market conditions.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The application of high technology in shrimp farming is delivering positive results in the coastal areas of Vinh Long Province, contributing to improved production efficiency and creating significant potential for further industry expansion. However, to fully capitalize on this potential, the province is focusing on aquaculture zoning, infrastructure investment, and promoting modern, sustainable production.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Đồng Tháp Province has intensified efforts to curb illegal fishing by strengthening vessel monitoring, law enforcement and seafood traceability.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) Seafood businesses need solutions to overcome bottlenecks such as labor shortages, difficulty accessing capital, high input costs, and administrative procedures in order to maintain production, adapt to market fluctuations, and effectively exploit export opportunities.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) The FTA would widen access to markets with strong demand for premium food products in line with the country’s strategy of shifting exports towards increasing added value.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On the morning of July 13th, Mr. Ho Quoc Dung, Member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam and Deputy Prime Minister, along with his delegation, visited and worked with businesses in An Giang province to promptly resolve obstacles and promote production and business activities.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) As importing markets increasingly focus on biosecurity and traceability, Vietnam has established a relatively comprehensive legal framework and disease management system for aquaculture, covering tilapia farming as well as other cultured species. This system is based on the Law on Animal Health, regulations on the prevention and control of aquatic animal diseases, the National Plan for the Prevention and Control of Major Diseases in Farmed Aquatic Species, and environmental monitoring and early warning programs for aquaculture areas.
(seafood.vasep.com.vn) On July 9, 2026, the Embassy of Vietnam in Brazil organized the seminar titled “Sharing Information on Vietnam-Brazil Economic, Trade and Investment Relations in the First Half of 2026” to provide updates on bilateral cooperation and strengthen connections among government agencies, industry associations, and business communities of the two countries.
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