According to the GNR in a statement, military officers from the Aveiro sub-station detected five tanks that contained 1,500 kilograms of sardines “without being able to identify its owner”.

The sardines were detected "as part of an operation to monitor compliance with the rules governing the unloading, transport and marketing of fresh fish".

Already 1,600 kilos of sardines were seized in the Algarve, more specifically in the auction of Olhão (Faro), during a surveillance and enforcement action, under the legal regime of the first sale of fresh fish.

The police seized the sardines “on suspicion that the fish had not been subjected to the first sale scheme” (auctioning), and a company was identified for the infringement.

The fresh fish sale scheme stipulates that the first sale must be made by auction through the auction system.

The objective of the scheme is to ensure the regulation of prices by the concentration of supply and demand, "ensuring compliance with the catch quotas established for the sustainability of species and hygienic control of fish," adds the GNR.