We contest the widely held view that all European fish stocks and fisheries are in a dire state (see, for example, Nature 475, 7; 2011).

With the exception of cod, which remains heavily overfished, key stocks such as haddock, whiting, plaice and sole are all exploited close to the maximum sustainable yield.

We examined data for the 40 fish stocks assessed by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) that have reference points for maximum sustainable yields. These account for more than 90% of total allowable catches by European Union (EU) fishing fleets in the ICES areas.

The average fishing mortality for these stocks has declined in the past 10 years and their average spawning stock biomass has increased. In 2010, 17 of them (43%) were fished at or below the level that delivers maximum sustainable yields — a substantial improvement on 12.5% in 2000. Fishing mortality has fallen since 2000 from 2.1 times the maximum sustainable yield to 1.3 times in 2010.

Much remains to be done, but there are clear indications that actions implemented under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) have been effective in bringing some stocks towards the target that will allow maximum sustainable yields. The CFP is under reform not because it has failed to achieve its targets, but because European Common Policies are reviewed every ten years (the last was in 2002).

After several decades of overexploitation, achieving this objective for all stocks will take time, but it is well under way. For some seas — the Mediterranean, for example — where the situation for most fish stocks is critical, we do not yet know whether management measures are delivering their intended objectives.