The EU fishing fleet catches about 25% less fish today than ten years ago.

Omissions

• The Eurostat snippet confirms the 2024 figure (3.2 million tonnes live weight, a record low) and a comparison baseline of ~4.6 million tonnes, but the exact year of the baseline (presumably 2014) could not be fully confirmed from the search snippet.
• The exact decline varies with the base year: ~30% if compared with 2014 (4.6 Mt) vs ~27% if compared with 2016; 'about 25%' is at the lower end of this range.
• Brexit nuance: EU-28 totals for the early part of the decade included UK fleet catches; comparing EU-28 2014 data with EU-27 2024 data partially reflects the UK's departure, not only declining catches. The MEP's caveat ('even after taking Brexit into account') acknowledges this, but the precise '25%' figure depends on methodology.
• Eurostat's 2024 landings figure (product weight, ~2.7 million tonnes) differs from catches in live weight (3.2 million tonnes); the claim refers to catches ('fängt').
• Only the Eurostat Statistics Explained page was available as a primary source; the full page could not be opened within the search limit to extract the exact baseline year and full context.

Sources

• PrimaryEurostat — Statistics Explained: Fisheries - catches and landingsThe total EU catch in 2024 was an estimated 3.2 million tonnes live weight. This new low in catches was well beneath the estimated 4.6 million tonnes in [earlier year, cut off in snippet]. The quantity of all aquatic organisms landed in the EU in 2024 is estimated to have been about 2.7 million tonnes product weight, representing a decrease... The EU fishing fleet has declined steadily since the early 1990s, in terms of both tonnage and engine power.
• PrimaryEuropean Commission (DG MARE) / MAPA — The EU fishing fleet: Trends and economic results (2025 edition)EU fishing vessels landed about 3.39 million tonnes of fish in 2023, a decrease of 2.6% compared with 2022. The value of these landings was approximately EUR 6.13 billion.
• AcademicDTU Orbit — European Union's fishing fleet: evolution, challenges and opportunities (technical report)The report documents the observed decrease in EU fishing fleet capacity, noting that all 22 coastal Member States have shown an annual decrease in both their GT and kW since [the reference period].
• SecondaryThe Fishing Daily — EU Fishing Fleet Shrinks As Catches Remain ConcentratedTotal fish catches by the EU fishing fleet were estimated at 3.3 million tonnes in 2023, measured in live weight. This was 3 percent lower than [the previous year]. Compared with 2014, this represents a reduction of 10,850 vessels, a fall of 13.6 percent. Over the same period, total fleet capacity declined...