The European Union imports more than 80% of the fishery and aquaculture products it consumes.

Omissions

• The '>80%' figure comes from the EPRS study, which calculates imports against total seafood consumption without subtracting the EU's own (substantial) exports of fishery products; the EPRS notes that if exports are excluded EU domestic production covers only 14.2% of consumption.
• On the standard EUMOFA indicator, the EU's self-sufficiency rate for fishery and aquaculture products was 38.1% in 2023 (first rise since 2018), a different metric that nets out EU exports and would imply a lower import share (roughly 60%) than the 80% quoted.
• Some sources (e.g. industry coverage of the same EPRS study) cite a figure of 'more than 70%' for extra-EU import dependence, showing that the exact percentage depends on the calculation method chosen.

Sources

• PrimaryEUMOFA — 'The EU Fish Market 2025' (DG MARE / European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture Products)In 2023, the EU self-sufficiency rate for fishery and aquaculture products increased, for the first time since 2018, to 38,1%, driven by declining imports.
• SecondaryEuropean Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) — 'Assessing the impact of seafood imports on EU self-sufficiency'Five case studies illustrate how high input costs and relatively low productivity mean that imports, now supply over 80% of the EU's consumption of fisheries and aquaculture products.
• Secondaryresearch4committees.blog (EPRS publication announcement) — 'Assessing the impact of seafood imports on EU self-sufficiency'If exports are excluded, EU domestic production covers only 14.2% of total seafood consumption, meaning imports supply over 80% of what [is consumed].