NOAA at the U.S. Mission to the European Union
The European Continent constitutes a great and growing opportunity for the U.S. seafood sector. But exporting fishery and aquaculture products can be a difficult exercise given the complexity of permanently changing legal landscape.
The NOAA Europe Office guides you through the maze of European legislation covering seafood import requirements and trade.
This office can help you:
- Expand into foreign markets,
- Find out what the sanitary requirements for your products are,
- Advise you on food labeling law,
- Explore what duty rates apply to your products,
- Reduce blockage at Border Control Posts.
For more information, your contact is Mr. Stéphane Vrignaud – NOAA Fisheries Representative to the EU.
E-mail: Stephane.vrignaud@trade.gov
Phone: +32 2 811 5831
Office Hours 9AM-6PM Central European Time
Learn about the steps to export seafood to the EU: Exporting Seafood to the European Union March 2023 Update.
The Foreign Agricultural Service GAIN reports are useful instruments to learn more about your potential market of destination, review “fisheries” related reports by country.
The European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture (EUMOFA) constitutes a good source of information on seafood production, prices and consumption in the EU.
The FAO Globefish web site gives you a more global approach to fisheries data.
Seafood promotion is key in the expansion of your business. Although this list is not exhaustive, the four main food shows featuring seafood in the EU are the following:
- Seafood Expo North America (March 10-12, 2024) – Boston, USA
- Seafood Expo Global (April 23-25, 2024) – Barcelona, Spain
- Conxemar (October 2024) – Vigo, Spain
As of 2021, over 20% of the global population directly depends on seafood as an important source of protein. Though historically, the oceans were seen as a limitless resource, today, we know that humanity has significant impacts on aquatic species and environments. For more information on NOAA’s initiative for a more sustainable fishery sector, including Fish Watch, see: NOAA Office of Sustainable Fisheries.
In January 2021, NOAA released its Blue Economy Strategic Plan for 2021-2025, laying out a roadmap for new ways to advance America’s Blue Economy and enhance the global ocean economy. NOAA’s data, tools, and services that support coastal economies and their contribution to the national economy touch all aspects of American life. Approximately 127 million people, or 40% of the U.S. population, live in coastal counties. In 2018, the American blue economy supported 2.3 million jobs, and contributed approximately $373 billion to the nation’s gross domestic product through activities such as tourism and recreation, shipping and transportation, commercial and recreational fishing, power generation, research, and related goods and services.
The NOAA Europe office monitors the latest developments on Blue Economy in the EU. For more information, contact us: stephane.vrignaud@trade.gov