Mangaluru: The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has launched a new digital catch certification and traceability system to help India’s seafood sector comply with amended European Union regulations.According to Manoj Kumar TG, deputy director, MPEDA, Mangaluru, the EU has required catch certificates for wild-caught marine products since Jan 2010 as part of measures to prevent illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. MPEDA, authorised by govt of India to validate these certificates, introduced online validation in 2010 and shifted to digital signature-based validation in April 2019, he stated.The amended EU regulations, which came into force on Jan 10, 2026, require additional information in catch certificates, including the fishing gear used, details of the master or fishing licence holder, voyage particulars and the validity of the fishing licence.MPEDA said it had enabled private agencies to develop applications for capturing primary traceability data. The data will be linked to the existing online catch certificate portal for validation. The certificate must accompany consignments of wild-caught marine products exported to the EU. Similar requirements are also followed by the UK after Brexit.During 2025–26, India exported 2,97,518 tonnes of marine products worth USD 1.6 billion (Rs 13,935 crore) to the EU, including the UK. The exports accounted for 15% of India’s total seafood export volume and 18.8% of its export value.Major products exported to the region included frozen shrimp, cuttlefish, squid, fish oil, fishmeal and surimi. Wild-caught products accounted for 16% of exports to the EU by volume and 27% by value.MPEDA said the dedicated digital platform would support a transparent and streamlined certification process, help exporters meet traceability requirements and safeguard continued access to the EU and UK markets.
