The global eel trade has become one of the most lucrative yet least understood forms of wildlife trafficking in the world. Estimated to be worth around €2.5 billion annually, it is the largest wildlife crime in Europe and one of the most serious conservation challenges worldwide. Despite an export ban on European eels since 2010, the species continues to appear on plates across Asia, highlighting a deeply entrenched illegal supply chain that spans continents, defies law enforcement, and threatens the survival of a critically endangered animal.

A Vanishing Species

Of the 286,000 tonnes of eel consumed worldwide each year, 99% are American, Japanese, and European species — all of which are listed as endangered, with the European eel classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Once abundant across European rivers, their populations have collapsed by more than 90% over the past four decades. Scientists attribute this decline to multiple pressures: habitat loss caused by damming and waterway modification, pollution, the impacts of the climate crisis, and, increasingly, the rise of industrial-scale trafficking.

Eels have one of the most mysterious life cycles in the animal kingdom. They spawn in the Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, and their larvae drift for months before transforming into transparent, finger-sized “glass eels.” These young eels migrate to Europe’s rivers and wetlands, where they mature before returning to the sea to spawn and die. It is during the glass eel stage that the illegal trade begins, as traffickers capture them in Europe’s rivers and smuggle them to Asia to supply eel farms.

The Global Trafficking Network

Despite the European Union’s export ban on live eels, trafficking networks have become more sophisticated and international in scope. Poachers in France, Spain, Portugal, and the UK catch millions of baby eels each year, which are then smuggled out of Europe through a web of intermediaries, brokers, and exporters. The fish are often concealed in suitcases, refrigerated shipments, or mixed with legal seafood cargo.

A growing trend involves routing the smuggled eels through North and West Africa, particularly Morocco, Mauritania, and Senegal, where they are “laundered” into legal exports destined for Asia. These transit countries allow traffickers to refresh shipments and disguise the origins of the eels. Once in Asia, they are raised on farms until they reach market size, then sold as a delicacy in restaurants and stores across Japan, China, and Korea.

Law enforcement agencies have tried to keep pace with these evolving networks. Since 2015, Europol’s Operation Lake has coordinated multinational crackdowns on eel trafficking. The latest phase, conducted between October 2024 and June 2025, led to more than 16,000 inspections, 26 arrests, and the seizure of 22 tonnes of live eels. However, such operations only scratch the surface of the trade, which continues to thrive due to high demand, weak international traceability, and vast profits.

Lack of Traceability and Regulatory Loopholes

One of the biggest challenges in curbing the illegal eel trade is the absence of a global traceability system. Unlike other seafood commodities, eels are not consistently tracked through digital supply chains. This allows traffickers to mix legal and illegal stocks, forge documentation, and exploit regulatory loopholes between countries.

Even well-intentioned importers in Asia often struggle to verify the origin of their shipments. The use of genetic testing, such as environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis, has improved detection in recent years, but the method is reactive — applied after shipments arrive rather than preventing illegal capture.

Moreover, legal inconsistencies between countries have made enforcement difficult. While European eels are protected under the EU and CITES regulations, other eel species like the Japanese and American eel have fewer restrictions. This disparity enables traffickers to disguise European eels as other species, further complicating regulation.

Economic and Cultural Drivers

The persistence of the eel trade is rooted in deep economic and cultural traditions. Eels are a prized delicacy in many Asian cuisines, particularly in Japan, where unagi (grilled eel) is both a traditional dish and a symbol of vitality. However, Japan’s own eel populations have declined sharply, leading to greater dependence on imports. In 2024, nearly three-quarters of all eels consumed in Japan were imported.

This demand fuels a black market that pays far more for illicit glass eels than legal European buyers can afford. For struggling fishers in Europe, the temptation to sell to traffickers is strong — especially in the face of dwindling legal fishing opportunities. The result is a vicious cycle where conservation laws drive the trade underground instead of eliminating it.

The Ecological and Legal Implications

The ecological impact of the trade is devastating. The loss of eels disrupts entire freshwater ecosystems, where they play vital roles as both predator and prey. Their decline also reflects broader environmental degradation — polluted rivers, blocked migration routes, and overexploitation of aquatic life.

Efforts to save the species have intensified. European scientists and environmental groups have urged governments to impose temporary moratoriums on eel fishing and restore river habitats. Others advocate for maintaining small, regulated fisheries to sustain habitat management and community livelihoods.

At the international level, the European Union has proposed expanding CITES protections to cover all Anguilla species, closing loopholes that allow traffickers to claim European eels as other species. However, major importing countries like Japan and China oppose this move, citing economic burdens and their own management systems.

A Race Against Extinction

After years of law enforcement actions, trade bans, and conservation campaigns, the global eel trade remains one of the most entrenched wildlife crimes. Without coordinated international policies and stronger consumer awareness, experts warn that the European eel may disappear within decades.

The extinction of this ancient species would not only erase a vital link in aquatic ecosystems but also mark a failure of global cooperation against wildlife crime. Unless the trade’s cultural demand, economic incentives, and regulatory weaknesses are addressed together, the world’s eels may soon vanish — leaving behind only the memory of their mysterious journeys across the sea.