Scampi or langoustine

In the Farn Deeps, scampi, often referred to as Nephrops or Norway lobster, are not overfished but are subject to overfishing.Stock assessments are carried out annually by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). The most recent assessment was published in 2025 using data up to 2025. The next assessment is expected in 2026.The stock assessment defines reference points for fishing pressure (F) and biomass (B). For fishing pressure, there is a target to keep F at or below Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY). For biomass, there is no target. However, there is a trigger point (MSY BTrigger). Below this level, F should be reduced to allow the stock to increase. Because BMSY is not defined, the Good Fish Guide (GFG) applies its own definition of 1.4 x MSY BTrigger.Stock abundance in 2025 is estimated to be 1,115 million individuals. Abundance had declined over the last several year from 1,163 million in 2019, but increased in 2025 to current levels. This is above target levels (MSY BTrigger, 858 million), but below the GFG BMSY proxy (1.4 x MSY BTrigger, 1,201 million). Therefore, the stock is not considered overfished.The total catch in 2024 was 2,152 tonnes. This is equivalent to a harvest rate of 11.1% of the population (by number). It is above the level associated with Maximum Sustainable Yield (FMSY, 8.12%) and the GFG proxy for Fpa (1.25 x FMSY = 10.15%), but below GFG proxy for Flim (1.4 x FMSY = 11.37%). The stock is therefore subject to overfishing and is outside safe fishing limits.ICES advises that when the MSY approach is applied, and assuming that discard rates and fishery selection patterns so not change from the average of the years 2022-2024, catches in 2026 should be no more than 2,176 tonnes. This is a 77% increase from the advice given in the previous year due to higher estimated stock abundance.A 2011 study on Norway lobster in the Clyde found a high prevalence of plastics and suggested that this could have implications for the health of the stock - this may have relevance for other Norway lobster stocks. Some of the plastics were sourced to fishing waste. Studies have shown that the effects of climate change - warmer waters, reduced oxygen levels, higher ocean acidity, and higher levels of heavy metals - can negatively impact Norway lobsters' larval development and make adults more susceptible to disease. Lower oxygen levels can also cause Norway lobster to leave their burrows, making them easier to catch.

Some management measures are in place for Norway lobster in the Farn Deeps. However, catch limits don't match the stock area, meaning there is a risk of overfishing. Recent catches and discards have been high. Management is not following scientific advice and is insufficient to prevent overexploitation.Norway lobster stock assessments are conducted by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES). Stock assessments are produced for 33 areas across the Northeast Atlantic, called Functional Units (FUs). However, management is applied to 18 areas, called management units. These management units broadly overlap with the functional units, but not very effectively. Vessels are free to move between grounds, allowing relatively uncontrolled fishing on some stocks, and risking overfishing. Scientists have repeatedly advised over the years that management should be implemented at the functional unit level, to better protect Norway lobster. This would result in fishing controls that respond to changes within individual stocks. However, this advice is not being followed.This stock is mainly fished by the UK. It is covered by the EU's North Sea Multi Annual management Plan (MAP), but the UK is not signed up to the MAP. There is no UK management plan for it. Catch limits (Total Allowable Catches, TACs) are in place, but these are not specific to this Norway lobster stock. One TAC covers the whole of the North Sea, encompassing 7 different stocks. This does not protect stocks from overfishing.Owing to the excessively high catches of Farn Deeps Norway lobster in the past, the UK brought in some emergency stock-specific controls in 2016. These were focussed on fishing gear and vessel restrictions, to reduce catch efficiency. In addition, quarterly catches are monitored, and catch limits are adjusted if fishing effort gets too high.Management appeared to reduce catch rates successfully by 2018, when fishing pressure declined to just above target levels. However, in 2019, catches reached 4,800 tonnes, the second highest on record after 2006, more than double the 2015-2018 average (2,000 tonnes) and the recommended limit (1,982 tonnes). Since then, catches have decreased, reaching 2,710 tonnes in 2022. Despite this, the harvest rate remains above FMSY. From 2020 to 2024, catches averaged 126% of the advice, indicating that current management measures are insufficient to control the fishery.In addition to catch limits, the EU and UK have controls on what fishing gear can be used for North Sea Norway lobster trawling. These measures relate to the size and structure of trawl nets. Recent measures to reduce whitefish bycatch (e.g. cod) required vessels in the northern North Sea using mesh size of below 100mm to employ highly selective gears (HSG), e.g. Gamrie Bay Trawl or Faithlie Cod Avoidance Panel. In 2012 most vessels operating in the northern North Sea and the Farn Deeps fished exclusively with specified highly selective gears (reducing cod catches by 60% by weight) or had installed 200 mm square mesh panels.There is Minimum Conservation Reference Size of 25mm in the North Sea. Below this size, Norway lobster must be landed but can't be sold for human consumption, and so have a lower value. Under the EU Landings Obligation (LO) and UK law, it is illegal to discard unwanted (e.g. undersized or over-quota) Norway lobster at sea. However, there are exemptions in this area, because this species survives well after being discarded, even from trawlers. Discarding is still allowed in all creel fisheries and up to 6% can be discarded from trawlers. Even so, compliance with the LO is poor throughout European fisheries, including in this one, and illegal discarding continues. Based on observer data, it is estimated that around 20% of the total catch is discarded.The Project UK FIP includes Nephrops caught by trawl or creel around the UK. It began in 2019 and ended in April 2024.The FIP was successful in tackling some issues, including providing research into habitat impacts and developing advice for potential approaches to a harvest strategy. These outcomes are not inconsiderable. However, there has been very little change to the footprint of the Nephrops fishery, and requirements are not being met for outcomes for endangered, threatened and protected (ETP) species, despite research by the FIP indicating that trawling poses a significant risk to them. The advice on harvest strategy has also not resulted in any changes to management.The EU and UK both have fishery management measures, which can include catch limits, population targets, and gear restrictions. However, compliance in the EU and UK has been inconsistent, with ongoing challenges in implementing some regulations. The goal of reaching Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) by 2020 was missed, with less than half of UK TACs in 2024 following ICES advice. In 2024, the EU and UK reaffirmed their commitment to sustainable fisheries by aligning management with scientific advice to gradually approach MSY. However, no new target date has been set for achieving MSY across all fisheries. The Landing Obligation (LO), an EU law retained by the UK post-Brexit, requires all quota fish to be landed, even if unwanted (over-quota or below minimum size). It aims to encourage more selective fishing methods, reduce bycatch, and improve catch reporting. However, compliance is poor, and accurate discard levels are hard to quantify with current monitoring programmes. The UK is in the process of replacing the LO with country-specific Catching Policies.The Marine Conservation Society views Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) with cameras is one of the most cost-effective tools for providing reliable fisheries data and aiding informed management decisions. Fully monitored fisheries enhance collaboration, data accuracy, stock recovery, and reduce impacts on marine wildlife and habitats. However, the full potential of REM may only be achieved when it tracks fishing location and documents catch and bycatch, particularly where vulnerable species and habitats are at risk. As of January 2024, the EU is introducing a Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) mandate for EU vessels, including CCTV cameras on vessels 18m or more that pose a potential risk of non-compliance, within the next 4 years. Across the UK, different approaches to REM are being taken and legislation is expected to be in place across all 4 countries within the next few years.The FIP lists Fishery Management Plans (FMPs) as a delivery mechanism for improvements. The Fisheries Act (2020) requires the development of FMPs (replacing EU Multi-Annual Plans) in the UK. 43 FMPs have been proposed and are at various stages of development and implementation, these should all be published by the end of 2028. FMPs have the potential to be very important tools for managing UK fisheries, although data limitations may delay them for some stocks. It is also essential the UK governments define and adopt a standardised approach or model across the four nations to a universally defined FMP design, to ensure the consistence, quality and coherence of all the proposal FMPs.The Marine Conservation Society is keen to see publicly available Fishery Management Plans for all commercially exploited stocks, especially where stocks are depleted, that include:An overview of the fishery including current stock status, spatial coverage, current fishing methods and impactsTargets for fishing pressure and biomass, and additional management when those targets are not being met, based on the best scientific evidenceTimeframes for stock recoveryImproved data collection, transparency, and accountability, supported by technologies such as Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM)Consideration of wider environmental impacts of the fishery, including habitat impacts and minimising bycatchStakeholder engagement

Trawling for Norway lobster can have an impact on seabed habitats, particularly on mud which is subjected to high disturbance by fishing. Bycatch may also be of concern.Norway lobster in the Farn Deeps are mainly caught by trawling, which accounts for 90% of catches. Most Norway lobster trawlers use a small net mesh (70-99mm), which can result in higher bycatch than the nets used to trawl for species such as cod or haddock. In the Farn Deeps, the nets must have a slightly larger than usual mesh size of 90mm.Nephrops are caught as part of a mixed demersal fishery, so bycatch can include cod, haddock, whiting, saithe, plaice and sole. In this area, North Sea cod is at dangerously low levels. The UK introduced a national cod avoidance plan in 2020 to reduce bycatch of cod, which includes area closures to protect spawning cod and real-time closures when too many cod are being caught. There is also a requirement to have a larger mesh size to reduce catches of small cod, but Norway lobster fisheries are exempt. In 2018, Nephrops trawls accounted for approximately 7% of all North Sea cod catches.Other bycatch could include skates, rays and sharks. These species are relatively hardy, and can survive when they are discarded, but their survival rates largely depend on how they were caught and handled. Mortality rates in otter trawls are shown to vary between 10-65%, depending on fishing and handling methods. Those vessels which employ codes of conduct on skate and ray handling and/or reduce the risk of their capture, will improve their survival rates, though many of these methods aren't implemented over whole functional unit or regional levels.Norway lobster are mainly found in soft mud, and therefore trawling for this species takes place primarily on mud habitats. These habitats are listed by OSPAR as threatened and declining due to their burrowing megafauna, which create complex structures and deep oxygen penetration. Species in these habitats include long-lived ocean quahog, polychaete worms, soft corals, and tall sea pens. Fishing causes severe disturbance in mud habitats: a 2023 OSPAR report found that 87% of offshore circalittoral mud has experienced high disturbance, indicating inadequate protection. Prolonged trawling is likely to affect the structure, species composition, and biodiversity of the burrowed mud community.There are Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in this Functional Unit, some of which are designated to protect seabed features from damaging activities. This fishery overlaps with parts of these MPAs, but the proportion of the catch coming from these areas is expected to be relatively low in relation to the unit of assessment (i.e. less than 20% of the catch), and so these impacts have not been assessed within the scale of this rating. Given the important role that MPAs have in recovering the health and function of our seas, Marine Conservation Society encourages the supply chain to identify if their specific sources are being caught from within MPAs. If sources are suspected of coming from within designated and managed MPAs, Marine Conservation Society advises businesses to establish if the fishing activity is operating legally inside a designated and managed MPA, and request evidence from the fishery or managing authority to demonstrate that the activity is not damaging to protected features or a threat to the conservation objectives of the site(s).

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