The first meeting of a taskforce set up as a result of the loss of one third of Ireland's fishing quota this year, estimated to cost the fishing industry €105 million, is taking place at Howth Harbour.
Industry groups have warned that the reduction of fishing opportunities following the EU December Fisheries Council could impact 2,300 jobs in coastal communities.
In a statement, the Irish Fish Processors and Exporters Association said the first meeting of the Food Vision Seafood Sector Group, marks a second task force in five years.
An earlier taskforce was set-up in March 2021 to assess the impacts of Brexit on the fishing sector and coastal communities.
The IFPEA said the seafood sector cannot continue from crisis to crisis and added there is no quick fix on the horizon.
It said while the task force can play an important role in supporting the sector's immediate survival, it believes lasting recovery will only come through reform - getting to that point - is the central challenge facing this new group, it said.
Speaking to reporters before the meeting began at Howth Yacht Club, Minister of State with Responsibility for Fisheries, Timmy Dooley, said the sector has been heavily hit in recent years.
He said a package of supports was needed to get through this difficult period, adding that it is hoped "stocks will recover by taking the conservative approach".
"That quota cut was right across member states in the European Union, but because we depend so heavily and we have such a large share of that mackarel quota, we're hit harder than anybody else", he said.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon, said the Food Vision 2030 structure is an appropriate way of addressing the challenges for the fishing sector.
"It felt right to me that the food vision structure is the right way to do this, where all the stakeholders coming together with the arms of the state or semi state bodies and state departments to figure out short term response to the challenges they face," he said.
The minister said it is also important to look at the medium term and "how we add value to our processing sector, how we support our agricultural sector and support our fisheries catch sector as well".
The Chairman of the National Inshore Fishermen's Association, Michael Desmond, said they have three requirements for the taskforce.
"Survival, opportunities, and support. Without the three of those being implemented immediately, the sector won't exist any more."
Standing on Ailt an Chorráin Harbour in west Donegal, fisherman and vessel owner Ciarán Doherty said he has two or three fishing trips left this year - a stark reflection of a crisis gripping Ireland's seafood sector.
"Every vessel has caught their mackerel quota for 2026 in one trip. Some boats are still fishing horse mackerel.
"Personally, we have a trip and a half of blue whiting, and one trip of boarfish left and that's it until next January. We've no more quota.
"The taskforce needs to listen to the fishing organisations from inshore to offshore. They know the problems," Mr Doherty added.
The inaugural meeting of the Food Vision Seafood Sector Group will be preceded by a joint launch, including ministers Heydon and Dooley.
Mr Dooley previously told RTÉ News that fish stocks have reduced dramatically in the Atlantic Ocean because of the overfishing by non-EU coastal states.
He said the Government is pressing the EC to target these countries while the taskforce will seek to provide measures to support coastal communities as stocks recover.
The Food Vision Seafood Sector Group will examine the challenges facing catch fisheries, aquaculture and seafood processing with the aim of developing a framework of measures within EU funding and state aid rules.
Former general secretary of the Irish Farmers' Association Michael Berkery, who has been appointed as an independent Chairperson, is tasked with drafting a report by June.
The Food Vision Seafood Sector Group membership, which will operate under Food Vision 2030, includes industry representatives and relevant government departments and State agencies.
A department spokesperson said a vibrant and sustainable seafood sector is central to maintaining coastal communities as well as Ireland’s food security and climate objectives.
Industry organisations who spoke to RTÉ News welcomed its establishment under the chairmanship of Mr Berkery.
Aodh O'Donnell, CEO of the Irish Fish Producers Organisation (IFPO), said it was timely and welcome as the Irish fleet faces an "escalating crisis" amid a 57,000-tonne quota reduction in 2026.
Mr O'Donnell said urgent action is required to address what he described as "the escalating crisis facing Ireland’s fishing fleet, processors, and service industries."
He believes the taskforce must deliver solutions and a vision in a sector worth €1.3 billion to GDP that supports 16,500 jobs.
"Without intervention, over 2,300 full-time equivalent jobs could be lost."
He said there is "a real urgency," to accelerate the process, amid quota reductions in key stocks including mackerel, Dublin Bay prawns, and whitefish.
Mr O'Donnell has called for the taskforce to examine fleet modernisation, the regulatory framework and quota optimisation.
While acknowledging Mr Dooley's support, he called for strong cross-party leadership and decisive national and EU measures to address the challenges at hand.
"Ireland has a promising future in seafood, but only if we secure a genuine level playing field and defence of our resources against third country overfishing of shared species.
"Our message is clear - Ireland’s fishing communities are prepared to adapt and operate sustainably, but they cannot continue to bear disproportionate economic losses while others benefit".
The National Inshore Fishermen’s Association (NIFA) said it will engage constructively with the taskforce and wants outcomes to reflect the realities of the coastal fleet.
The organisation said inshore vessels under 18 metres make up around 80% of the industry and support thousands of livelihoods in small harbour communities.
It also said a single boat can sustain a harbour economy, but smaller vessels are weather dependent and exposed to market volatility, causing weekly income to fluctuate sharply.
NIFA Chairperson Michael Desmond recently told an Oireachtas committee that the inshore sector has been pushed to the brink as he urged politicians to consider a Basic Income Stabilisation Payment.
"We are not asking the State to make fishermen wealthy," he told the committee.
He said boats were losing 80-100 days a year to climate-driven conditions while bait prices are becoming unsustainable and boats cannot diversify due to closed fisheries.
"We are asking the State to recognise that a climate-exposed primary food sector cannot operate with zero income stability while every comparable sector has support mechanisms in place for them," Mr Desmond said.
"We are not going broke in one year - we are slowly being squeezed out," he added.
He also believes the taskforce should examine the reopening of selected inshore fisheries with appropriate conservation safeguards as well as quota distribution as stocks recover.
In terms of membership of the Food Vision Seafood Sector Group, nominations have been sought from the Killybegs Fishermen’s Organisation, the Irish Fish Producers Organisation, the Irish South and East Fish Producers Organisation, the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation, the National Inshore Fishermen’s Association, six Regional Inshore Fisheries Forums, IFA Aquaculture, co-operative representatives, Irish Islands Marine Resource Organisation and the Irish Fish Processors and Exporters Association.
State agencies on the taskforce include Bord Iascaigh Mhara, Marine Institute, Bord Bia, Teagasc Enterprise Ireland, Fáilte Ireland, Údarás na Gaeltachta, Southern Regional Assembly, Northern & Western Regional Assembly and the Western Development Commission.
Officials from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation will be in attendance while officials from seven other departments will be asked to attend as required by the chairperson.
Meanwhile, in Ailt an Chorráin, a once thriving harbour, Ms Doherty echoes what others in the sector have repeated on many occasions.
He believes the core issue - a lack of quota - requires action at European level.
"We’re looking at Norwegian vessels 70/80 miles west of Burtonport, fishing blue whiting.
"You’ve the Spanish, the French, everybody is out there. The fish is there; our share isn’t and that’s the problem."
He warned that without action at European level, the mackerel dispute could worsen, which will add unnecessary pressure, leaving the taskforce with much to consider over the next four months.
