The Government presents a strategic plan for national fishing on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of the association
July 10, 2026, Rome - A truly national strategic plan for Italian fishing. This is the next objective for the future of the sector that the Government intends to implement. This further step forward for the sector emerged this morning at the national event "The Sea That Innovates: Fishing Between Crisis and Future Challenges," organized by Federpesca in Rome to mark the 65th anniversary of the association representing entrepreneurs in the sector. This important opportunity for discussion, led by journalist Fabio Gallo, brought together institutions, businesses, researchers, and representatives of the fishing industry to reflect on the main challenges facing Italian fishing and identify shared strategies to strengthen its competitiveness, sustainability, and capacity for innovation.
"Fishing companies create development, employment, and the country's food sovereignty," explained Federpesca President Giovanni Azzone at the opening. "This is why fleet renewal, human capital, and access to investment and public resources are crucial. If we don't address the fleet, it will be difficult to address safety, sustainability, and energy."
Federpesca Director General Francesca Biondo, after addressing the sector's current economic crisis, also addressed the issue of fleet renewal. "Only in fishing is productivity treated as a suspect, and not as the natural goal of any healthy economic activity. For this modernization to be truly possible, both for new construction and for the retrofitting of existing vessels, it is necessary to separate tonnage limits from investments in safety and onboard living spaces: we cannot ask companies to build safer and more livable fishing vessels, while simultaneously keeping them tied to tonnage parameters designed for other purposes, which end up penalizing the very investments we want to incentivize. A reformed Feampa should finance the replacement of vessels with modern, safe, and efficient units, support digitalization and innovation onboard, and promote sustainability as a competitive lever, not a constraint."
Among the participants was Francesco Lollobrigida, Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty, and Forestry. He explained how the government has worked in recent years to strengthen its relationship with the fishing industry, also presenting the sector's future objectives: strengthening investments, promoting the production and valorization of fish, and supporting fleet renewal with more modern and multifunctional vessels capable of meeting current needs.
Masaf Undersecretary Patrizio La Pietra highlighted the recovery of delays in payments for fishing bans and the measures implemented to support businesses, including the tax credit for fuel costs: "Ten days after the deadline for applications for the tax credit, the €10 million made available should be sufficient to cover the needs. Should the need for additional resources emerge, the Government will evaluate an increase in the budget." The Undersecretary then indicated the priority of developing a fully-fledged National Plan for Italian Fisheries, capable of directing available resources and mapping out the sector's future.
Masaf's Director General for Maritime Fisheries and Aquaculture, Graziella Romito, also reviewed the administrative progress of the fishing ban, announcing the goal of completing payments for the definitive suspension of vessels already scrapped by the summer break. "For the future," she stated, "we are working on the 2027 program and the Feampa funds. We will create a program that invests in the sector and establishes priorities, focusing on fleet innovation, generational turnover, and attracting new operators through a comprehensive set of measures, not isolated interventions."
Also participating in the meeting were Admiral Inspector Vincenzo Leone, Deputy Commander General of the Port Authority - Coast Guard; Ismea Director General Sergio Marchi, who reiterated the importance of facilitating access to credit for small and medium-sized businesses; Enrico Arneri of the CNR Irbim; and CREA President Andrea Rocchi.
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