The publication is a summary of:
- The UK fishing fleet
- Its activity at sea
- Landings - how much fish they catch and land
- Effort - how long they spend at sea
- Trade
Key statistics include:
| Fleet | In 2022 there were 5,541 UK registered fishing vessels. This represents a 14% reduction in the last ten years, however Gross Tonnage (GT) has remained similar at 203 thousand tonnes. Approximately 21% of the UK fleet is represented by vessels over 10 metres in length, of which 44% are administered in Scotland. There are around 10 thousand fishers working on UK registered vessels. This is a reduction of 2,100 fishers in the last ten years. |
| Landings | In 2022, UK vessels landed 640 thousand tonnes of sea fish with a value of £1.04 billion. Compared to 2021, this is a decrease of 2% in quantity, however an increase in value of 13%. The increase in value is mainly driven by higher fish prices. Landings into the UK by foreign vessels in 2022 was 19 thousand tonnes, which compared to 2021 represents a 4% reduction. Landings abroad by UK vessels also decreased to 245 thousand tonnes, a reduction of 5%. |
| Effort | Since 2004, fishing effort (kW days at sea) by the over 10m fleet has decreased by around 40%. Most of the reduction in effort is driven by a 1% decline in effort in the demersal trawl and seine segment. Fishing effort by the over 10m fleet decreased by 3% between 2021 and 2022. |
| Trade | The UK is a net importer of fish. The UK's crude trade gap in 2022 for sea fish is 316 thousand tonnes. This is lower than 2021, where the gap was 322 thousand tonnes. In 2022 the UK imported 647 thousand tonnes of sea fish, with a value of £3.7 billion. It exported 330 thousand tonnes, with a value of £1.7 billion. |
View the full report, tables and underlying datasets at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/uk-sea-fisheries-annual-statistics
Notes:
The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) regulates the seas around England, including the management of fisheries.
The MMO has the difficult balancing task of ensuring that stocks are managed throughout the year to maximise fishing opportunities for the UK industry, while ensuring that stocks are not overfished and the UK government and taxpayer does not have to pay steep penalties.
We are continually working with the fishing industry to improve day-to-day management with accurate catch limits and forecasts that secure longer fisheries, while safeguarding the welfare of fish stocks.
