Overview
- In mid‑June 2026 the European Commission advanced fisheries measures that dpa reports would cut Alaska pollock imports from Russia by about 50 percent over two years.
- The Thünen‑Institut says Germany has become highly dependent on Russian pollock, with direct imports rising from 22,600 to 54,000 tonnes between 2020 and 2024 and Russia now supplying roughly 45 percent of that market.
- Germany hosts about 60 percent of the EU's fish‑stick production, so reduced Russian supplies would likely force production cuts, raise consumer prices, and put processing jobs at risk, the institute warns.
- Industry and government say substitutes are limited: U.S. wild pollock supplies are tied up in long contracts and farmed species like pangasius cannot fully match the volume, format, or price of Russian wild pollock.
- No final EU decision has been published; a full import ban was reportedly discussed then set aside and the German Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture is conducting an impact review before member states decide next steps.