ICES recently published a Technical Service presenting the Electronic Monitoring Interchange Format, a new open standard developed to make it easier to share electronic monitoring (EM) data between fisheries compliance agencies, companies providing EM services, and other authorised users such as research organizations that study discarded or unwanted catches.
EM systems use cameras, GPS, and onboard sensors to record fishing activity, providing independent information that supports fisheries management, compliance, and scientific assessment. As EM programmes become more widely adopted around the world, vessels increasingly operate across multiple jurisdictions, creating a growing need for compatible data exchange.
Until now, EM providers have typically used proprietary data formats, making data exchange costly and creating barriers to long-term access, interoperability, and innovation. The new Electronic Monitoring Interchange Format (EMIF) standard was developed in collaboration with the majority of current EM providers to address these challenges with a shared, provider-neutral format. It allows different systems to exchange video, sensor data, configuration information, and event logs while maintaining data integrity and a clear record of custody.
The standard was developed through ICES Workshop on Interoperability Standards for Electronic Monitoring Data (WKISEMD), co-chaired by Melissa Garren (USA) and Jens Rasmussen (Scotland).
Building consensus
When asked about the biggest challenges in bringing together regulators, technology providers, and other stakeholders to agree on a common standard, Garren says that it takes time and trust to come to a consensus among different fishers, regulators, and technology providers, which requires long-term investment in bringing people together and creating space for respectful conversations around a variety of technical and socio-political issues. “Furthermore, many of the providers find themselves in direct competition with each other for the same contracts, and thus a certain level of market maturity and total market size is required to support collaboration among providers."
Rasmussen points out that ICES is well-placed to coordinate work like this – both as an intergovernmental marine science organization whose member countries span the North Atlantic and with an established track record of bringing together scientists, policy-makers, and industry to develop shared standards and best practices for fisheries. He says, "ICES already hosts the Working Group on Technology Integration for Fishery Data (WGTIFD), which brings in-house technical expertise on EM from across member states. ICES provides the neutrality, scientific credibility, and international reach, based on best available science, necessary for a standard that must be trusted and adopted globally."
Between April and June 2026, participants from government agencies, research organisations, and electronic monitoring providers across Europe and North America worked together to build on previous international efforts and produce a practical standard for the fisheries community.
The Technical Service introduces the standard and makes it available for adoption by fisheries authorities, EM providers, software developers, and researchers.
"There was great interest and excitement immediately upon release by the broader community", sayd Garren, "and some providers have already started to explore the standard with their own data." This work built upon efforts that were initiated more than five years ago with support from the NetGains Alliance, and this standard a culmination of a long collaborative process that many are thrilled to see and begin working with.
The workshop results encourage future work that should focus on governance, validation tools, and further development of the standard through ICES expert groups, recommending that ICES establish a dedicated group to maintain and develop the standard over the longer term, with the Working Group on Technology Integration for Fisheries-Dependent Data (WGTIFD) set to lead the groundwork in the meantime.
The full Technical Service is available to view or download from our library.
