Implementation of IPOA/IUU - International MCS Network

53While these catch documentation and certification schemes shouldcertainly help to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing, care should be takenthat they do not overly burden legitimate fishers, dealers and brokers who areseeking to comply with the new paperwork requirements. To address thisconcern, paragraph 76 of the IPOA-IUU provides that these schemes should bestandardized to the extent feasible and that they should rely on electronic meanswhere possible. Paragraph 91 of the IPOA-IUU further called upon FAO toconvene an Expert Consultation to develop recommendations for implementingthis provision. The Expert Consultation took place in January 2002. 1057.2 Other Market-Related MeasuresIn addition to the development and adoption of import controls anddocumentation schemes, the IPOA-IUU calls upon States to take other marketrelatedmeasures to prevent, deter and eliminate IUU fishing.Paragraph 71 of the IPOA-IUU, for example, urges States to improvethe transparency of their markets to allow the traceability of fish or fish products.The concept of traceability is related to that of certification, but differs in oneimportant respect. The certification schemes discussed in the previous sectionseek to allow a State to determine where and when a fish was harvested and bywhom (and, in the case of the CCAMLR scheme, whether the harvest wasconsistent with CCAMLR conservation rules). Traceability seeks to allow agiven product to be traced through all stages of production and distribution, notjust at the moment of importation, landing or transshipment.The European Union is moving forward on initiatives to improve thetraceability of fish products as part of a larger effort to promote food hygiene andsafety. As of January 2002, all fishery products marketed in the European Unionmust include proper marking or labels indicating the species of the product, theproduction method (caught at sea, in inland waters or farmed) and the catch orproduction area. 106 These requirements may also have benefits for restricting themarketing of IUU fish in the European Union. 107105 See Report of the Expert Consultation of the Regional Fisheries Management Bodieson the Harmonization of Catch Certifcation. There are also examples of States that haveimplemented multilateral market-related measures to combat IUU fishing outside theframework of a RFMO. Members of the FFA, for example, have prohibited theimportation of fish harvested illegally in waters under the jurisdiction of other FFAmembers.106 EU regulation 104/2000, article 4.107 Another project based in the European Union, known as TRACEFISH, is developingmeans to achieve an electronic system to trace fish and fish products from the moment ofharvest to the moment of final sale. More information on the project is available at thewebiste of TRACEFISH: www.tracefish.org.