Oceana welcomes proposal to ban seafood imports caught by Russian vessels 

Press Release Date: June 10, 2026

Location: Madrid

Contact:

Irene Campmany | email: icampmany@oceana.org | tel.: +34 682 622 245

Yesterday, the European Commission proposed its 21st sanctions package against Russia, which will finally address one of the last major unsanctioned sectors: fisheries. The European Commission proposes a complete ban on cod and substantial restrictions on imports of certain fish products from Russia.  

Oceana has been calling for a ban on Russian-caught seafood since 2022. If adopted by Member States, this sanctions package will finally prevent Russian seafood from reaching European plates and stop European companies from importing and profiting from it.  

Even if EU rules require that fresh and frozen seafood products indicate the origin of the fish, the EU does not require disclosure of the country that caught it. This means that European consumers have been kept in the dark and may have unknowingly supported the Russian war effort through their seafood consumption. Russia is also considered a high-risk country for illegal fishing, due to its poor performance when it comes to effectively fighting illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. 

To address this, Oceana is calling on the EU to revise the Common Market Organisation Regulation for fisheries products, to require all seafood products to include information such as species, origin, fishing gear, and country that caught the fish, explained Vanya Vulperhorst, Head of Campaigns at Oceana in Europe. 

Scale of Russian imports: 

In 2024, EU seafood imports from the Russian Federation amounted to 179.807 tonnes and EUR 710 million. Frozen cod and frozen Alaska pollock, the main products imported, accounted for 45% and 42% of the total volume of Russian seafood imports, respectively. In value terms, frozen cod represented 58%, and frozen Alaska pollock accounted for 26% of the total Russian seafood imports.  

For imported cod specifically, Russia represented 24% of the volume and 19% of the value of EU cod imports. In 2024, cod imports reached 75.525 tonnes, valued at EUR 619 million. 

Source: EU Fish Market 2025