The Sustainable Eel Group welcomes the British Government’s landmark decision to prohibit the export of glass eels to Russia. This critical step ensures the protection of the European eel, a species whose populations have dwindled by an alarming 90% over recent decades. SEG certifies about 80% of the glass eel fishery and the eel farms of Europe.

Since 2021, a Gloucestershire-based elver station has been supplying glass eels to the Russian company Goodfish, which claimed to use them for conservation projects in Kaliningrad. Despite assurances of their use in restoration efforts, concerns over monitoring capabilities and the potential exploitation of the eels for food, rather than conservation, resulted in widespread opposition, with more than 55,000 petitioners demanding the cessation of this trade.

The DEFRA decision comes after an impassioned campaign by conservationists, including the nature writer Richard Fleming, and a growing recognition of the immense human threat already posed to the European eel stock. As a fish protected under the Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species, the European eel requires the utmost vigilance. The trade to Russia had raised alarms among environmentalists, who pointed to significant risks that these critically endangered elvers would be diverted to illicit markets, despite efforts to regulate their export.

Andrew Kerr, Chairman of the Sustainable Eel Group, applauded the decision, emphasising that this ban marks a pivotal moment in the evolving history of British eel policy. ‘This is a victory for common sense as there is no way to assure that the eels would be used for conservation, and much better that they be left to migrate up our rivers and especially the Severn where £25m has been spent to enable improved fish migration. The elver fishing focus must now shift to local efforts to restock eel populations within depleted waterways, particularly those that rely on glass eels from the Bristol Channel’. It follows statements made in a recent weeks to BBC Points West and others, in which Kerr identified possible ways forward for the modest Gloucestershire glass eel industry: namely, conservation fishing, which involves catching young eels to release them into suitable habitat beyond barriers; and responsible fisheries management, as defined in the latest guidance for the SEG Standard.  

DEFRA’s spokesperson has reiterated his department’s commitment to safeguarding protected species, noting that every export application is rigorously assessed to ensure it complies with the highest standards of sustainability and legality. The decision has received broad support from conservationists and local communities, who believe that resources should be dedicated to restoring eel populations in the UK’s rivers.

With the eel trade to Russia now officially ended, SEG urges the government to focus on funding and supporting local restocking efforts, especially in areas like the Severn and Parrett, where lost wetland habitat, barriers to migration, surface runoff, ‘diffuse pollution’, and water pumps present particular hazards to this endangered species. Lets hope this move is more than a small regulatory shift but it is a reaffirmation of Britain’s responsibility to safeguard biodiversity, and a reminder that the delicate balance of our natural ecosystems requires careful stewardship.

Read the full story:

‘Eel Exports Stopped Over Illegal Trading Concerns’, BBC News

‘Export of endangered eels to Russia ends after UK Government ban’, The Guardian