At a meeting in Luxembourg that went on into the small hours of Tuesday morning, European Union fisheries ministers eventually reached agreement on a new control regime to prevent fishermen across the EU from landing illegal catches.
The agreement follows repeated reports of undeclared or illegal catches that the European Commission argues have hindered conservation efforts.
Aside from controls on professional fishermen, including penalty points that could lead to the suspension or withdrawal of a fishing licence, there will also be new limits on recreational fishing where it is considered to threaten endangered fish stocks.
The main beef for Finnish fishermen is that the EU is to prohibit the sale of catches taken by amateur fishermen in their boats in Finnish marine waters.
Finland opposed the mover, but other countries carried the day.
"The decision is likely to increase the grey economy", said Minister of Agriculture Sirkka-Liisa Anttila (Centre Party) in Luxembourg on Tuesday.
The sales ban will come into effect from the beginning of next year and it will mean Finland will have to consider what sort of sanctions would be suitable for breaches of the rules.
Finnish recreational fishermen in sea areas particularly catch salmon.
In future, the sale of any extra salmon - or any other fish caught from the sea - to the neighbours or to relatives will be off-limits.
