Description
The R50 Catch Label System registers catch on board a fishing vessel and prints labels for it. It records where and how the fish was caught, what it weighed and how long it was, and it follows the product through sorting, filling, packing and freezing.
What R50 records
For each registration, R50 captures:
- Catch location, optionally taken from a GPS sensor;
- Fishing method;
- Weights and lengths;
- Custom fields that you define for your own statistics.
Custom fields let a skipper, a producer organisation or a scientific observer collect the extra data they need without a separate system. An NFC sensor is also available as an option. How registration supports traceability from haul to buyer is explained in catch registration and traceability.
From haul to labelled box
R50 supports each step of on-board handling: registering, sorting, filling, packing and freezing. As a catch label system, R50 puts the registered information on labels, so it stays with the box or pack. For the practical side of printing labels in a wet, moving fish room, read labelling fish boxes at sea. For weighing equipment, see the fishing and offshore scales.
Sending data ashore
Catch data can be sent ashore while the vessel is still at sea. That lets office staff, buyers or processors see what is on board before landing and plan sales, transport and processing. For background on how weighing data moves between vessel and shore systems, see weighing data logging and the data integration hub.
Labelling rules and traceability
Which data a box label must carry depends on the rules for your fishery. As an example, under the EU sampling plan for weighing on board, boxes must carry a durable, firmly attached label with the vessel name, CFR or IMO number, FAO alpha-3 species code and the kilograms per species, presentation and area (Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1932, Annex IV, Part A, applicable from 11 January 2027). The same regulation requires weighing records for its sampling and control plans to be available electronically to the authorities by 10 January 2030 (Art. 3(4)).
These requirements apply to the operator and vessel, not to a product in isolation. Check with your flag state which rules apply to you, and read EU fisheries control weighing rules and the legal metrology hub before you define your label layout.
Planning an R50 installation
R50 is configured to the vessel and the way the crew works. When you ask for a quote, describe:
- the vessel type and fishery, for example trawlers or longliners and small-scale vessels;
- the handling steps on board and where registration and labelling should take place;
- the data you need on labels and in reports, including any custom fields;
- whether you want GPS and NFC sensors and how data should reach shore.
Then request a quote.