The government today reiterated its position against all forms of illegalities in the fishing and tuna farming industry.

With reference to a press statement by Europol, which revealed how millions of euros were made by bluefin tuna having been caught in Maltese waters and illegally shipped to Spain, the Government of Malta said that through its competent authorities, it is currently collaborating with the European authorities in the ongoing investigation Operation Tarantelo.

The Ministry for the Environment, Sustainable Development and Climate Change is following closely the investigation and remains fully committed to promoting sustainable practices in the aquaculture and fisheries sectors through rigorous controls and procedures. Any form of illegality in the fishing and tuna farming industries undermines its sustainability and cannot be tolerated.

The Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture is persistently undertaking control measures to deter abuses and taking immediate legal action against any defaulters.  The Department will also cooperate with the tuna operators to promote sustainable practices within the framework of the applicable rules, the government said.

Statement issued by the FMAP following a recent statement by Europol

Also reacting to the story was the Federation of Maltese Aquaculture Producers (FMAP), which said that while it is not privy to any of the investigations being made, it is to be noted that the statement issued by Europol makes no reference to fish fattened in any of the bluefin tuna farms in Malta but to fish allegedly caught in Italian and Maltese waters. The focus therefore appears to be on illegal fishing of bluefin tuna and not to fish harvested from any of the Maltese aquaculture producers.

Notwithstanding this the Federation makes it clear that it will not tolerate any illegalities and that it strongly supports the authorities in their endeavours to keep the Bluefin tuna market free from any illegalities. The FMAP is however taking these allegations very seriously and as a matter of fact discussed the statement by Europol with representatives of the EU commission at a meeting in Brussels held earlier on this week. We will continue to cooperate with all relevant authorities as necessary as we have always done.

The federation noted that during the past weeks the Federation was at the forefront to cooperate with the Government and its authorities to propose self-regulatory measures that go beyond those established by law including the latest controls communicated to the press that were implemented at harvest stage.