The scientific study BIOMAN'2024 puts the anchovy biomass level in the Bay of Biscay at 143,000 tonnes: above the historical average

• The annual scientific monitoring campaign estimates the level to be "well above" the historical average
• The final figure will be obtained by the end of the year with the joint analysis of the data from the fisheries catches and the JUVENA and PELGAS campaigns
• Research work financed by the Basque Government and the European Commission, with the collaboration of the General Secretariat for Fisheries, essential to guarantee the sustainability of the species

 The Anchovy, one of the most important resources of the sea for fisheries and the economy, is maintained at healthy levels. The provisional results of the scientific campaign called "BIOMAN" put the biomass of this species in the Bay of Biscay at 143,000 tonnes , which is well above the historical average.

"The data prepared by the AZTI, a scientific centre that carries out studies and high-impact transformation projects for the Basque Government with organisations aligned with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, ensure the sustainability of the resource, as it far exceeds the figure of 21,000 tonnes set by the biological limit of the population. Moreover, the recent data far exceeds the historical average of 80,000 tonnes that this campaign has documented since it began in 1987," assures Amaia Barredo, the Basque Government's Minister of Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries. 

"This is excellent news, which highlights the value of our commitment to environmental sustainability over the years, especially on the part of Basque fishing sector, which employs more than 3,500 people in the Basque Country", stressed the Councillor.

With this data we have secured next season's coastline. These are very positive results, and in order to have a definitive biomass figure and to be able to advise managers, we will have to wait until the end of the year, when we have the data obtained from the other campaigns and the catches of the fishing fleet," stresses Amaia Barredo.

 "JUVENA", a campaign also led by the Basque technology centre AZTI determines the abundance and distribution of juvenile anchovies - less than one year old - and "PELGAS", an action coordinated by the French institute Ifremer, will provide information on the status of the anchovy stocks, as well as the functioning of its ecosystem in the French Atlantic area.

This analysis will be carried out in Madrid in the framework of the ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea) working group on anchovy, sardine and horse mackerel , and its conclusions will be fundamental to advise on the determination of the TAC (Total Allowable Catch) for the year 2025.

"With this comprehensive analysis, we will have a more accurate picture of how many of the anchovy specimens born this spring become juveniles in autumn, which depends on various environmental and ecosystemic factors such as temperature, food availability and predators," Barredo adds.

This campaign has been viable thanks to the financial support of the Department of Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries of the Basque Government and the European Commission, which committed to it almost four decades ago. In addition, the collaboration of the General Secretariat of Fisheries of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, which has provided the use of its oceanographic vessels, Emma Bardán and Vizconde de Eza, has been fundamental.

Sustainability of the seas

As has been the practice since 2016, the BIOMAN 2024 campaign was implemented with an ecosystem approach with the aim of achieving integrated management of the environment and living resources to promote conservation and sustainable use in an equitable way.

Aside from estimating the biomass of the species, the focus has also been on other factors such as sardine biomass, anchovy food, the presence, abundance and behaviour of predators and other marine organisms, oceanographic conditions, human activities and marine litter .