Major UK supermarket stops selling mackerel to 'protect the long-term health of our oceans'

Tinned mackerel will also eventually disappear from the shelves once the current stock has sold.

Instead, Waitrose is launching a new range of fish products including smoked and peppered herring and sweetcure seabass.

The retailer is the first UK supermarket to suspend sourcing of mackerel.

The move comes after the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (Ices) recommended a 70 per cent reduction in catches this year for all mackerel stocks in the region and its adjacent waters, compared to recommended levels in 2025.

However, with the stock repeatedly fished above sustainable levels, the recommendation for 2026 was equivalent to a 77 per cent reduction on the 755,143 tonnes the scientists estimated would be caught in 2025.

Overfishing has resulted in depleting mackerel stocks in the north-east Atlantic, with Ices saying the species, and the wider fishing industry, could face long-term risks unless countries stick to recommended catch limits.

Jake Pickering, head of agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries at Waitrose, said: “By suspending sourcing of mackerel at Waitrose we are reinforcing our ethical and sustainable business commitments, acting to tackle overfishing and protect the long-term health of our oceans and this crucial fish.

“Our customers trust us to source responsibly, and we are closely monitoring the fishery.

“We look forward to bringing mackerel back to our shelves once it meets our high sourcing standards.”

Waitrose said it would maintain its relationship with its mackerel suppliers and its new supply of herring, seabass, sardines and trout will be sourced through current supplier partnerships.

But there is currently no predetermined time-frame as to when Waitrose will start sourcing mackerel again.

Marija Rompani, director of ethics and sustainability at the John Lewis Partnership, said: “We believe sustainable food production must balance climate action, nature protection and responsible fish sourcing is fundamental to protecting our oceans.

“We will continue to work closely with suppliers and industry partners to support the recovery and responsible management of fish stocks.”

Charles Clover, co-founder of conservation charity Blue Marine Foundation, said mackerel – one of the largest remaining commercial fish stocks in the north-east Atlantic – had declined 75 per cent in the last 10 years because fishing nations including the UK had overfished it.

“They have put too little effort into the task of reaching agreement on a sharing arrangement – and some countries have been awarding themselves more quota than is justified by science,” he said.

“This crisis has been ignored for too long.

“We hope that this action by Waitrose sends it to the top of the political agenda. We call on other retailers to follow Waitrose’s example.”

He warned: “The plight of the mackerel is part of a wider failure to take scientific advice intended to keep stocks healthy and able to recover from fishing pressure.

“Last year more than half of UK catch limits were set above sustainable levels.

“It’s why cod, whiting, herring, pollock and haddock have all collapsed in recent years in the Celtic Sea.”

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