The EU has an external dependency of over 70% in the fisheries and aquaculture sector.

Error detected

The claim states external dependency is 'over 70%' but official EU data (Blue Economy Report, EUMOFA) places it at approximately 62-63%, a difference of at least 7 percentage points.

Omissions

• The MEP did not specify the time period for the claim. The most recent official data available before the session date (2026-05-18) shows dependency at approximately 62-63%, well below the claimed threshold of 70%.
• The EP study published in January 2026 (after the data period of 2023) notes that the 62% figure is a 'minimum' import dependence rate, meaning some alternative calculation methods could yield higher figures, but the core official metric does not reach 70%.
• Some secondary sources and industry analyses claim dependency exceeds 70% using broader definitions of consumption-based dependency, but these are not the standard EU statistical measures used by EUMOFA or Eurostat.

Sources

• PrimaryEU Blue Economy Report 2025 (European Commission)The EU's self-sufficiency is estimated to have decreased to 37.5% in 2022; therefore, for each 10kg of fish that EU citizens ate, more than 6 kg came from imports. This implies an external dependency rate of approximately 62.5%.
• SecondaryEuropean Parliament Study: Assessing the impact of seafood imports on EU self-sufficiencyAccording to the EU Seafood Supply Synopsis 2024, the minimum EU import dependence rate for 2023 was approximately 62% of total supply.
• SecondaryIntraFishThe EU's seafood self sufficiency is expected to fall even further to 33 percent. Of the total 12.5 million-metric-ton supply in the EU, implying an import dependency of approximately 67%.