2021 Aquaculture Performance Showed a Return to Form From Pandemic Levels
Near the end of 2022, Statistics Canada released a final update for Canadian aquaculture in 2021, highlighting a large increase in sales, price and production from the previous year.
This major uptick is mostly due to a steady recovery of the food service and hospitality industries as most of the country eased COVID-19 restrictions. Sales of aquaculture rose by 28.1 per cent to $1.4 billion in 2021.
Due to increases in salmon prices, finfish production in Canada rose by 5.5 per cent to ...
Taxpayers Invest in Stock Rebuilding, so They Should See the Benefits: Researcher Claims
Jennifer Silver, an associate professor at the University of Guelph, says that attention to socioeconomics needs to be considered by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) alongside economic and biological impacts when rebuilding fish stocks.
“Some fisheries, both in the Atlantic and in the Pacific, are known to be quite dominated by some corporate players where the access to the fisheries themselves are concentrated,” said Silver.
“If we’re investing in the science and ...
DFO Pledges Additional Funds for Ghost Gear Cleanup in Spring 2023
Above: Photo courtesy of Clean Harbours Initiative
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has been funding industry members to retrieve lost fishing gear as part of their Ghost Gear Fund since 2020 and has recently added funding in response to the damage from Hurricane Fiona.
The fund began as an initiative of its zero plastic waste agenda, wherein DFO set up a fund that industry members can apply to for monetary assistance to retrieve ghost gear in their local waters.
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Foreign Demand for P.E.I. Seafood Growing
Despite being heavily affected by Hurricane Fiona and rising costs, interest in Prince Edward Island seafood has remained strong.
Jamie Fox, the Minister of Fisheries and Communities for P.E.I., has cause to celebrate 2022 despite all the hardships the industry has undergone. Along with the other Atlantic provinces, his department has made major strides in communication with the federal government and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO).
“One of the big things this year was our ...
Facing Challenges in Old Markets, New Brunswick Diversified in 2022
New Brunswick seafood exports reached $1.6 billion in the first nine months of 2022.
While this is a downturn from the banner year of 2021, Minister of Agriculture, Aquaculture, and Fisheries Margaret Johnson said the province is still on pace to pass its pre-pandemic levels.
“We know that the numbers were really high during the pandemic because people had a little extra income to spend on high-end goods, but that was a very positive thing,” said Johnson.
Like many Atlantic ...
2022 Landings Stayed Strong in N.L.
Despite the challenges 2022 presented — from rising inflation to lower prices for shellfish and a drop in sales of Atlantic Canadian seafood — Newfoundland and Labrador’s Fisheries, Forest and Aquaculture Minister Derrick Bragg said there is still cause to celebrate the year.
The landed value for seafood is up from 2021, currently sitting at $1,237,194,816 as of December 13, marking a nearly 16 per cent increase from last year.
“The landings are up, especially in shellfish,” ...
Nova Scotia Fishing Industry Remained Resilient Through 2022
In a year of rising costs, supply chain interruptions, weaker export markets and cataclysmic weather, Steve Craig remained positive about the resilience of his province’s fishing sector in 2022.
“The economic impact of the sector continues to be high in Nova Scotia. We had it valued at about $2.8 billion,” said Craig, N.S. Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture.
“And then, of course, the innovations. You take a look at the things that are being done around traps, looking at ghost ...
Number of Indigenous Communities Participating in East Coast Fisheries Continues to Grow
Since the Supreme Court Marshall Decision was handed down in 1999 affirming First Nations’ treaty right to fish, hunt and gather in pursuit of a moderate livelihood, participation in the commercial fishery by Indigenous communities and fishers has grown.
“Over the past 21 years, DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans) has provided over $630 million to participating Indigenous communities to help develop fishing enterprises for multiple species, which has included vessels and gear, as ...
Study Reveals Halibut May Be Put at Risk by Redfish Fishery
A new study based on satellite tagging and interviews with fish harvesters has revealed a potentially negative impact between halibut spawning grounds and a potential redfish fishery in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
According to researcher Rachel Marshall of the Fisheries and Marine Institute, the study started as a tagging study on halibut off the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador in Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) division 4R. The goal was to work with fish harvesters...
Whale-Safe Gear Legislation Delayed Until 2024
However, DFO Says it Will Not Stop Required Fishery Closures
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) recently announced the timeline for harvesters in Atlantic Canada to implement lower-breaking-strength fishing gear has been extended to 2024.
The gear is meant to reduce the severity of entanglement by whales, particularly North American right whales and is designed to break under 1,700 pounds of force.
Alternatively, the department has also pitched ropeless gear as a ...
