It is the Christmas period now. On the Christmas table, according to the tradition, fish should reign in any form, from the carp in aspic to the salted herring. It is hard to imagine Christmas without fish. For thousands of years it has been a frequenter in every kitchen. Fish was so widespread and available to everyone that have become a symbol of the Christian era. However, something began to attract people's attention over the last few decades: fish from year to year became more and more expensive, especially the sea fish. And it is an inescapable sign of impending deficiency on the market. Is it really getting that bad?

Unfortunately, yes. The Court of Auditors has no illusions. Catches are so large that they destroy the habitat of fish and its breeding places. A drastic example is the fate of bluefin tuna migrating from the Atlantic to the spawning grounds in the Mediterranean Sea. In the past two decades its population has decreased by 80%. Also in the Baltic Sea situation looks bleak. About 50 years ago, uncontrolled fishing has led to the depletion of sturgeons, 20 years ago our Baltic salmon has gone, only ''imported'' population of this species remained. European eel is also threatened with extinction. Blacklisted retain cod, which was embraced by the special protection program of the EU. There are no more rich resources of zarte, whitefish, there is only little of perch. The facts are that overfishing concerns 5 out of 7 most harvested species of Baltic fish.

The problem is faced not only by the EU, but by the whole world. The biggest havoc in the oceans is spread by powerful trawlers, mostly Japanese. These "collect" in nets everything, including endangered species and are real floating factories. Fish on such ships is immediately processed and frozen in huge cargo with capacity of 6 thousand tons. And no wonder, since most nets, which they pull together, could hold more than 20 jets. The big trawlers contributed to the fact that most of the ten major edible species of fish are harvested in the maximum level, including the popular herring and pollock. Threatened with extinction are halibut, tropical shrimp, hake, tuna, flounder and shark. If the present state of the fisheries exploitation remains, UN warns that in less than 50 years there will be nothing to catch. And it may become a global problem, because today nearly 12% of worlds' humanity lives of fishing, manufacturing and trade of fish. This number makes us act.

What should we do in order not to lose jobs and still have fish which we like on the Christmas Eve's dinner table in the future? First of all, thoughtful fishing regulations should be implied. Recently, MEPs have approved a reform of the Common Fisheries Policy till the 2020. It aims to improve the management of this sector in the EU. However, it is not the best solution. Focusing exclusively on the seas of the EU will affect European fishermen even more with the restrictions. And the main guilty part for the devastation of fish, "floating factories of fish cannery", will continue their job and that is not what we want. It is a must to start negotiations as soon as possible but at the international level, not regional. It is not about small boats in the Baltic Sea that are a threat to fish, but the giant trawlers. Their activities should be limited. Instead of liquidating family fishing business, we should strengthen them before it is not too late. They are a guarantee of rational fishing solutions. Destroying them in the new member states, even with the EU financial support, is good only for big corporations, for which either fish or a man does not have much importance. It is seen with the naked eye, that it is an attempt to get rid of the competition in the fish market. The fish should be protected, if we want to continue eating it, but rationally and with a good plan of support for small-scale fishermen, even if it leads to a conflict with big companies. It should be done in the name of all future Christmas holidays and in the name of the proverbial herring, of course.

Dr. Bogusław Rogalski, Political scientist
ECR Advisor for the international affairs at the European Parliament