Finnish herring trawler forced to dock despite record catches

Finnish fishermen are being forced to tie up their trawlers despite an exceptionally abundant herring season in the Bothnian Sea, reports Yle. Strict EU quotas based on outdated stock assessments threaten to halt fishing operations as early as April, leaving vessels idle for months.

The herring population in the Bothnian Sea is thriving, with fish in the best condition since the 1980s, according to the Finnish Natural Resources Institute (Luke). However, the Sonnfish company, owned by brothers Anders and Jonas Granfors, faces an early end to its season due to EU quotas that fail to reflect the current stock size.

“A few years ago, we had to work a full week to catch what we now land in three days,” Anders Granfors told Yle as his trawler, Sonnskär, unloaded 180 tonnes of herring in Kaskinen. The catch was so large that some fish had to be pumped ashore through a thick hose.

Scientists attribute the herring boom to abundant food sources, particularly small crustaceans resembling shrimp. Yet the EU’s 2025 quota—set at under 40 million kilograms—is based on data from autumn 2024, which researchers say underestimates the stock. The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) had recommended a higher limit.

“The quota is smaller than ICES advised. It could well have followed the recommendation,” said Luke’s senior researcher Jari Raitaniemi.

For the Granfors brothers, the quota means their trawler could sit docked from April until late autumn. “It’s brutal,” Anders Granfors said. “Normally, we’d work until late May, then take a summer break for maintenance. When the water warms, the fish quality drops.”

An EU promise of additional quota in November offers little relief. “There’ll be no income, but the boat still costs money in port,” Granfors added. Industry leaders warn that unpredictable quotas discourage investment and destabilise both fisheries and stock management.

Fishing runs in the family: the brothers’ grandfather cast nets, their father and uncle bought the first trawler in the 1990s, and Anders joined at age 12. Now, with three children of his own, he faces an uncertain future. “I’ve always loved the sea—it’s my home,” he said. “But this makes it hard to plan ahead.”