Lots of fishery and aquaculture products that are subject to Article 58 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 and Articles 66-67 of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 404/2011 and mixed lots which contain both said fishery and aquaculture products as well as fishery and aquaculture products that are subject to the requirements of catch certificates under Council Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008.

Regulations on traceability for certain fishery and aquaculture products

Under the control system reforms of 2009-2011 in Regulations (EC) No 1224/2009 and (EU) No 404/2011, respectively, the EU requires the operators concerned to have systems and procedures which guarantee traceability of lots of the fishery and aquaculture products concerned. The information that the system contains on lots and deliveries shall be accessible by the competent control authorities at all times. Lots shall be marked, for which the EU provides certain frameworks but leaves it to the Member States to specify the marking methodology used, provided that it is based on international standards. The information in the marking is primarily stipulated directly by EU legal acts. The EU permits Member States to exempt from the traceability requirements any direct sales of catches from fishermen to final consumers if sales are below the threshold of EUR 50 per day per final consumer. At an early stage the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management, in consultation with industry representatives, determined that a digital solution was needed, i.e. an IT system, to manage the volume of information generated and that it would be advantageous if the Agency developed and managed such a system. Through the IT system, the parties involved with traceability can provide information to each other and keep it accessible to competent authorities. The notified regulations are essentially executive regulations for the provision of information on marking and traceability in the IT system. The regulations also contain certain additions and clarifications, in relation to EU legal acts, which have been deemed necessary for a satisfactory traceability system and to guarantee the secure and accurate transfer of information at all stages. The regulations also specify the marking methods that are permitted in Sweden and provide the framework for traceability requirement exemptions as allowed by the EU for certain direct sales from fisherman. The external traceability, by which lots are tracked, makes considerable demands on the parties' internal traceability. It is therefore reasonable for the internal traceability to be documented. The regulations therefore contain proposals for such documentation.