EU – Baltic States, Latvia, Legislation, Markets and Companies

Capping the maximum level of benzopyrene in sprats implies that smoked sprats in oil, a traditional Latvian product, would have to be withdrawn from the market. On the other hand, the proposal to reduce the maximum dioxin limit may result in a ban on sale of all fish caught in the Baltic Sea, writes LETA.

Approximately 70% of Latvia's fish processing industry use fish from the Baltic Sea, mostly sprats and Baltic herrings. Over 10,000 people in Latvia work in the fishing industry, of them around 7,000 are employed at fish canneries.

A ban on selling fish and fish products from the Baltic Sea could leave around 5,000 people jobless, unless canneries can instantly find an opportunity to buy fish from the North Sea, the Atlantic Ocean and elsewhere.

Fishermen working in the coastal areas will lose any chance of keeping their jobs.

People working in the fishing and canning industry call the European Commission's proposals to limit the content of various harmful substances in food a waste of time and squandering of money, as a result, member states will also have to spend money on countless costly analyses.

The proposed regulation is still under debate and, theoretically, could yet be rejected.

As Latvijas Avize reports, the proposal to introduce the new regulations was made without taking in consideration the consequences that the suggested measures may have on the member states' economies, social stability and traditions.