“However, factors including declining stocks, quotas set above new scientific advice and poor recruitment have combined to mean that the fisheries no longer meet the MSC’s requirements.”

The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) states that mackerel populations have been in freefall since 2011, dropping from a high of 4.79 million tonnes to 2.75 million tonnes last year.

Council experts advised that current catches must be cut by over two thirds to allow the stock to recover to a sustainable level over the next two years