The European hake stock in the North Sea, the Skagerrak and Kattegat, the Celtic Sea, waters west of Scotland and Ireland, the Bay of Biscay, and Iberian Atlantic waters (ICES areas 3a, 4, 6, 7, 8a, 8b and 8d) is doing reasonably well. Although biomass remains above sustainable levels, the stock has been declining in recent years. Current fishing pressure is too high and is expected to cause the stock to decline further in the long term.
Fishing with anchored gillnets has low CO₂ emissions but carries a high risk of lost fishing gear and may catch marine mammals, seabirds and other protected species (ETP) as bycatch. Fishing with bottom otter trawls results in higher levels of discards and bycatch and causes greater damage to the seabed and benthic life. Anchored gillnets are therefore the better choice, although both fishing methods receive a red rating due to the high fishing pressure on the stock.
Management is considered partly effective. The fishery is jointly managed by the European Union, the United Kingdom and Norway through catch limits, but the current measures are insufficient to further reduce fishing pressure. Enforcement and the monitoring of discards, bycatch and lost fishing gear remain areas of concern. Approximately 20% of the hake fishery using bottom otter trawls is MSC-certified, compared with approximately 2% of the fishery using anchored gillnets.