European eel

Anguilla anguilla

5: Avoid How we work out the ratings

What to check for

Location

Europe: Europe, All Areas

Production method

Closed system, RAS

Rating summary

European eel is not farmed like other aquaculture species, the process comprises of catching of juvenile eels from the wild and growing them in captivity. This form of aquaculture is called on-growing or ranching. European eel is assessed as Critically Endangered in the wild by the IUCN and is a Red List species. Eel ranching contributes to depletion of endangered wild stocks, it does not provide an alternative to reducing pressure on wild stocks. Eel need high protein diets, including fishmeal and fish oil which cannot be assured as being sourced from a sustainable supply.

Rating last updated January 2023.

How we worked out this Rating

Feed used is not responsibly sourced and the fishmeal and fish oil content is unknown.

European eel are fed a commercial pelleted diet containing both marine and vegetable proteins and oils. Production standards do not verify the sourcing of these ingredients to be responsible and it is at the feed manufacturer level that any responsible sourcing decisions will be made. It is difficult to ascertain the fishmeal and fish oil content of feed, however there is a high demand for proteins and oils.

Critically endangered wild caught juveniles are used in production, and therefore this section is a critical fail.

Despite European eel being farmed in recirculating systems, which for any other farmed species would result in a favourable score in this section, results in a critical fail for eel. This is due to the fact that European eel are a ranched species as opposed to being farmed within a closed lifecycle. Ranching is the process of on-growing wild caught juveniles to harvest size within a contained facility, in this case a land based recirculating system. As the IUCN continues to list European eel as critically endangered and ICES still recommends a zero catch for this species, combined with the complete dependence on wild juveniles for on-growing, frequently misnamed as farming, a critical fail and avoidance of this species necessary until such time as the lifecycle can be closed and hatchery reared young are produced.

Welfare practices are unknown.

Information pertaining to the welfare and humane slaughter of European eel is difficult to obtain, however it would appear that in the absence of production standards no provision is made for either.

For farms certified under the Sustainable Eel Group Standard, there are practices to ensure animal welfare and humane slaughter

As a capture fishery remains for a critically endangered species despite zero catch advice, management is not adequate for this species.

As recirculating aquaculture systems are land based many of the regulations that apply to open systems do not apply. Those that do are deemed to be effective, however there still remains a capture fishery for this critically endangered species despite the advice of a zero catch. European eel production is not certified. Farms certified to SEG Standard have been acknowledged as seeking improvement.

References

Biomar. European Eel Grower Feed. Available online at: https://www.biomar.com/globalassets/.global/pdf-files-_en/datasheets-_en/-english/eel/en-dan-ex-2848-15-mm-eel-man.pdf [Accessed on 18/07/2019].

Costas Karipoglou and Cosmas Nathanailides. 2009. International Journal of Fisheries and Aquaculture Vol. 1 (1), May 2009. Available at: http://www.academicjournals.org/IJFA. [Accessed on 18/07/2019].

FAO 2004-2019. Cultured Aquatic Species Information Programme. Anguilla anguilla. Cultured Aquatic Species Information Programme. In: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department [online]. Rome. Updated 1 January 2004. [Cited 18 July 2019].

FAO 2005-2019.  National Aquaculture Legislation Overview. Netherlands. National Aquaculture Legislation Overview (NALO) Fact Sheets. Text by Spreij, M. In: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department [online]. Rome. Updated 27 January 2005. [Cited 19 July 2019].

FAO 2005-2019.  National Aquaculture Legislation Overview. Italy. National Aquaculture Legislation Overview (NALO) Fact Sheets. Text by D'Andrea, A. In: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department [online]. Rome. Updated 10 March 2005. [Cited 19 July 2019].

FAO 2005-2019.  National Aquaculture Legislation Overview. Denmark. National Aquaculture Legislation Overview (NALO) Fact Sheets. Text by Skonhoft, A. In: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department [online]. Rome. Updated 1 February 2005. [Cited 19 July 2019].

FEAP. 2017. European Aquaculture Production Report 2008-2016.

FEFAC SOY SOURCING GUIDELINES 2021. Available at: https://fefac.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/FEFAC-Soy-Sourcing-Guidelines-2021-1.pdf [Accessed on 28/03/2022].

ICES. 2022. European eel (Anguilla anguilla) throughout its natural range. In Report of the ICES Advisory Committee, 2022. ICES Advice 2022, ele.2737.nea. Available at https://doi.org/10.17895/ices.advice.19772374. [Accessed on 23/01/2023].

Jacoby, D. & Gollock, M. 2014. Anguilla anguilla. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014: e.T60344A45833138. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T60344A45833138.en. Downloaded on 19 July 2019.

Pike, C., Crook, V. and Gollock, M. 2020. Anguilla anguilla. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T60344A152845178. Available at: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T60344A152845178.en. [Accessed on 20.01.2023].

RAINFOREST ALLIANCE SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE STANDARD. Version1.2. 2020. Available at: https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/resource-item/2020-sustainable-agriculture-standard-farm-requirements/ [Accessed on 28/03/2022].

Roundtable on Responsible Soy. Version 4.0 2021. Available at: https://responsiblesoy.org/documentos/rtrs-standard-for-responsible-soy-production-v4-0?lang=en#:~:text=0,-Last%20approved%20Version&text=Generic%20standard%20setting%20out%20Requirements,conformity%20in%20certified%20production%20sites [Accessed on 29/03/2022].

RSPO Principles and Criteria for the Production of Sustainable Palm Oil. 2018. Available at https://rspo.org/standards. [Accessed on 29/03/2022].

Sustainable Eel Group. 2016. Sustainable Eel Group Standard. Available at: https://www.sustainableeelgroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/103-SEG-Standard-V5.2.pdf [Accessed on 23/01/2023].