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24 Aug 2010
Unit:
LEI
 During the last decades, the eel stocks in the European waters have steadily declined, resulting in a bad situation for the eel population as well as the eel fishery. Accordingly, various measures have been proposed aimed at protecting the eel stocks, ranging from (partial) closure of the eel fishery to restocking activities and market related measures.
In the first half of 2009, LEI and IMARES, both of which are part of Wageningen UR, carried out a study for the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) into the effectiveness of halting eel sales in the Netherlands in relation to allowing the eel stocks to recover. Four scenarios were analyzed, ranging from partial to complete closure of the eel fishery and the eel farming sector. For each of these scenarios, the economic consequences for the eel sector (including fishery, aquaculture, processing and retail) as well as the biological consequences were determined.
The WWF will not make use of the report. One of the reasons for this is that a closed season has already been implemented for the eel fishery, and various supermarkets have already removed eel from their shelves. Events on the ground have clearly caught up with theory.
Report 2010-044 The impact of a potential sales ban for eel on stock and sector
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