Docapesca Portos e Lotas

Docapesca Portos e Lotas is a Portuguese state-owned company responsible for the operation of fishing ports and fish auction markets (lotas) along the Portuguese coast. Its origins lie in the mid-20th century effort to modernize and centralize the landing and sale of fish in the Lisbon area. In 1956, Decree-Law 40764 set out that the concession to operate the Pedrouços Fishing Dock should be granted to a limited liability company whose capital would be subscribed mainly by the Lisbon City Council, the Trawler and Sardine Fishing Guilds and the Central Board of Fishermen's Houses, with the remainder reserved for Portuguese shipowners, fishermen, fish traders and industrialists. The company, Docapesca - Sociedade Concessionária da Doca de Pesca, SARL, was incorporated by public deed on 10 January 1959, and the concession contract for the Pedrouços Fishing Dock was signed on 9 January 1961. Docapesca officially began operating the Lisbon Fishing Port on 29 August 1966, with a 25-year concession period. Following the political changes of April 1974, the social positions in Docapesca's capital that did not belong directly or indirectly to the state were nationalized in 1976, and the company came under the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Fisheries. In the same period it was given responsibility for building two cold stores, one in Peniche and the other in Matosinhos, reflecting the industrial refrigeration experience it had already acquired. Over the following decades Docapesca expanded its role from a single Lisbon concession into a nationwide network of ports and auction markets. Today Docapesca presents itself as the operator of fish auctions and sales points throughout Portugal. Its website provides daily statistics, notices and announcements, an online auction platform, contact information and tariffs, and it runs promotional campaigns for Portuguese fish, including the "Fresh Portuguese Fish. Nothing Better." campaign and the Expo Fish Portugal event. It also engages in environmental and sustainability initiatives such as the "A Pesca por um Mar Sem Lixo" (Fishing for a Trash-Free Sea) project, which invites fishing boat owners to help keep the ocean free of litter. The company is headquartered in Lisbon and remains a state-owned entity.

Docapesca's history begins with the mid-20th-century reorganization of Lisbon's fishing dock. On 7 September 1956, Decree-Law 40764 was published, determining that the concession to operate the Pedrouços Fishing Dock should be granted to a limited liability company. The majority of its capital was to be subscribed by the Lisbon City Council, the Trawler and Sardine Fishing Guilds and the Central Board of Fishermen's Houses, while the remainder was reserved for Portuguese shipowners, fishermen, fish traders and industrialists working in the Lisbon fishing center, as well as their guilds, mutual societies, cooperatives and similar organizations. Docapesca - Sociedade Concessionária da Doca de Pesca, SARL was incorporated by public deed on 10 January 1959. On 9 January 1961, the concession contract for the operation of the Pedrouços Fishing Dock was signed by the General Administration of the Port of Lisbon and Docapesca. Docapesca officially began operating the Lisbon Fishing Port on 29 August 1966, the same date on which the 25-year concession period set out in the contract came into effect. Following the changes that took place in April 1974, the social positions in Docapesca's capital that did not belong directly or indirectly to the state were nationalized in 1976, and the company became the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Fisheries. In that year Docapesca was also given responsibility for building two cold stores, one in Peniche and the other in Matosinhos, based on the experience the company had already acquired in industrial refrigeration (Joint Order of the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture and Fisheries of 20 July 1976). Council of Ministers Resolution no. 189/82 of 14 October 1982 is referenced in the company's history, indicating further institutional developments in the early 1980s. Over the decades that followed, Docapesca evolved from a single-dock concessionaire into the national operator of fishing ports and fish auction markets (lotas) across Portugal. Its modern activities include running fish auctions and sales points, publishing daily statistics, issuing notices and announcements, operating an online auction platform, and providing contact and tariff information. The company also promotes Portuguese fish through campaigns such as "Fresh Portuguese Fish. Nothing Better." and events like Expo Fish Portugal, and it supports environmental initiatives such as "A Pesca por um Mar Sem Lixo" (Fishing for a Trash-Free Sea), which invites fishing boat owners to join efforts to keep the ocean free of litter. Headquartered in Lisbon, Docapesca remains a state-owned company.

• 1982

  Council of Ministers Resolution no. 189/82 of 14 October referenced in the company's history.

• 1976

  Non-state social positions in Docapesca's capital nationalized; company placed under the Secretary of State for Fisheries and tasked with building cold stores in Peniche and Matosinhos.

• 1966

  Docapesca officially began operating the Lisbon Fishing Port on 29 August; the 25-year concession period came into effect.

• 1961

  Concession contract for the operation of the Pedrouços Fishing Dock signed on 9 January by the General Administration of the Port of Lisbon and Docapesca.

• 1959

  Docapesca - Sociedade Concessionária da Doca de Pesca, SARL incorporated by public deed on 10 January.

• 1956

  Decree-Law 40764 published on 7 September, determining that the concession to operate the Pedrouços Fishing Dock be granted to a limited liability company.

State-owned operator of Portugal's fishing ports and fish auction markets, promoting Portuguese fish and sustainable fishing.

• Fish auctions and sales points

  Operation of fish auction markets (lotas) and sales points across Portugal.

• Online auction

  Online platform for fish auctions.

• Daily statistics

  Publication of daily statistics on fish auctions and sales.

• Cold storage

  Cold stores built in Peniche and Matosinhos following the 1976 mandate.

1. 1Docapesca - Fish auctions and portsdocapesca.pt
2. 2Historydocapesca.pt
3. 3Docapesca Portos e Lotas (Portugal) - Wikidatawikidata.org