N.S. Seafood Trade Mission Builds Stronger Market Connections With China
A recent 10-day trade mission by Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Kent Smith strengthened the province’s relationship with China, Nova Scotia’s second-largest seafood market.
It was also an opportunity to promote the province’s world-class seafood and support Nova Scotia seafood companies on the ground. A total of eight Nova Scotia seafood companies exhibited at the China Fisheries and Seafood Expo: Louisbourg Seafoods Ltd., World Link Food Distributors Inc., Right Source Group Ltd., Clearwater Seafoods Ltd., Everich Import and Export Inc., Mersey Seafoods, Ship’s Lobster Pound 2005 Ltd. and Golden Alliance Canada Inc.
“This trade mission was incredibly important for our producers, for our economy and for nurturing relationships,” said Minister Smith.
“Beyond promoting our high-quality products, we gained a greater understanding of China’s consumer trends toward convenient and health-conscious choices — areas where Nova Scotia’s high-quality, responsibly harvested and traceable seafood stand out.”
The trade mission began on October 26 and included:
- Opening the Canada Seafood Conference, profiling Nova Scotia’s seafood to Chinese importers;
- assisting Nova Scotian seafood companies at the China Fisheries and Seafood Expo, the second largest international seafood trade show in the world, in Qingdao;
- participating in the advancing Canada-China agri-food engagement panel at the Canada-China Business Council annual general meeting;
- participating in the announcement of a strategic branding agreement between JD.com Inc. and Clearwater Seafoods Ltd.;
- a meeting with federal Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Minister Heath MacDonald to discuss opportunities to promote Nova Scotia seafood around the world;
- meetings with government officials to strengthen Nova Scotia-China ties.
Despite the new tariffs on most seafood imports from Canada, there was a strong sense of optimism for future trade in conversations with Chinese seafood importers and government officials.
China is Nova Scotia’s second largest seafood market, with exports totalling $615 million in 2024.
Nova Scotia has twinning agreements with governments in Fujian, Shandong and Guangdong provinces
More Concerns Raised Over Grounded Bulk Carrier
The Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union (FFAW-Unifor) is expressing serious concern following reports that the MSC Baltic III has sustained further structural damage and deterioration due to repeated severe weather events near Cedar Cove, close to Lark Harbour, N.L.
Heavy waves and high winds this fall have caused the bow and stern of the cargo vessel to move independently, worsening an existing buckle in the hull first damaged when the ship ran aground in February.
“This isn’t just about one ship — it’s about protecting our future,” said Stacey Wilton, a fish harvester from Fox Island River. “If fuel, debris or contaminants from the Baltic III leak into our fishing areas, the impact on the crab and lobster fisheries could be devastating. We can’t afford to wait for another storm to do more damage.”
The Canadian Coast Guard, overseeing the salvage operation carried out by a private contractor, confirmed visible structural damage to the ship’s bulkheads and framing after crews boarded the vessel this week. Coast Guard officials have acknowledged that deteriorating conditions and the vessel’s position make further salvage work extremely limited at this time.
FFAW-Unifor representatives met with MSC and salvage officials on October 27 to urge immediate cleanup before the onset of harsh winter conditions on Newfoundland’s west coast. Union members stressed that delaying the operation could lead to the exact scenario now unfolding.
“Our members made it clear months ago that waiting until winter would turn a bad situation into a disaster,” said Katie Power, Industry Relations Representative with FFAW-Unifor. “This wreck is now a ticking environmental time bomb, and the lack of urgency to address it has put our fisheries, our coastlines and our communities at serious risk.”
Investigation Ongoing Into St. Mary’s Plant Fire
The police and the Fire Commissioner’s Office are reporting that the cause of the fire that completely gutted the St. Mary’s Bay Fisheries processing plant on Nov. 4 is still ongoing.
The region’s largest employer was destroyed by fire overnight during a harsh wind and rainstorm. All local firefighters could do was contain the scene. Out of caution, about 20 residents evacuated their homes to stay at the town hall until the early hours of the morning, when the fire was brought under control.
Approximately 300 workers were employed at the plant and were processing redfish at the time of the fire.
Police are encouraging anyone with information or surveillance footage from the area to contact Holyrood RCMP at 709-229-3892.
N.L. Government Celebrates World Fisheries Day
To mark World Fisheries Day 2025, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador proudly highlighted the vital role the fishing industry has played in supporting the province’s economy and rural communities.
Celebrated annually on November 21, World Fisheries Day recognizes the value of local fisheries and their importance in supporting coastal communities and the global economy.
“Newfoundland and Labrador is home to thousands of people who contribute to the province’s fishing industry and strengthen our communities through harvesting, research, processing, transporting and developing new technologies to modernize our fishery,” the government said in a press release.
The fishery and storytelling are two important aspects of Newfoundland and Labrador culture and customs. To celebrate these traditions and in recognition of World Fisheries Day, the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture asked kindergarten to grade six students across the province to submit stories about a local, friendly fish harvester.
DFO Presents Scientific Insights About North Atlantic Right Whales
On October 29, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) scientists presented a comprehensive update of the latest scientific knowledge of North Atlantic right whales (NARW) and their potential for recovery to stakeholders and interested Canadians.
This review was conducted by DFO as part of a Recovery Potential Assessment (RPA) for NARW, assessing a broad range of topics including population status, abundance and distribution, habitat requirements, threats and recovery targets.
The research found:
- Known feeding areas for NARW have expanded to as far north as the Gulf of St. Lawrence. This is due to rising ocean temperatures and declines in prey in NARW traditional feeding areas.
- The biggest threats to NARW survival and recovery is human activity, particularly vessel strikes and fishing gear entanglements.
- Population projections show that if threats are adequately mitigated, the NARW population can recover to a healthy state in the next 35 to 100 years.
The information from the RPA will be used to continue to inform the NARW Recovery Strategy and comprehensive management measures the Government of Canada has in place to protect species and their habitat. Decisions on right whale management approaches are informed by the best available science, as well as engagement with industry, Indigenous groups and environmental organizations, and take into account socioeconomic considerations.
Since 2018, DFO has implemented numerous measures to prevent entanglements of NARW, including targeted whale surveillance, fishing area closures when and where NARW are detected, testing and trialing of whalesafe fishing gear, and taking action on ghost gear.
Quick facts:
- NARW were assessed as endangered by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) in 2003 and listed under the Species At Risk Act in 2005.
- NARW are migratory and present year-round in eastern Canadian waters, with peak detections from April to November.
- DFO monitors NARW using aerial surveys and acoustic tools like gliders and buoys that listen for whales underwater to track their locations in Canadian waters.
Assessment Finds Gulf of Maine, Georges Bank Not Depleted but Overfishing Rising
A recent lobster stock assessment found that the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank (GOM/GBK) are not depleted, but have declined 34 per cent since peak levels in 2018 and overfishing is occurring. Meanwhile, the Southern New England (SNE) stock remains “significantly depleted,” with record-low abundances for all life stages in recent years.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC)’s American Lobster Management Board received the results in October.
“The Benchmark Stock Assessment is a considerable advancement in our understanding the American lobster resource. It was fully endorsed by an external panel of fishery scientists as the best scientific information available to manage the lobster resource,” stated Board Chair Renee Zobel from New Hampshire.
The ASMFC showed the differences between the GOM and GBK lobster fisheries. The GOM fishery, which makes up about 82 per cent of U.S. lobster landings since 1982, is driven by small vessels on nearshore day trips, while the much smaller GBK fishery — about five per cent of landings — is conducted by larger vessels on multiday offshore trips. Total GOM/GBK landings rose from a 1980s average of roughly 35.4 million pounds, passed 100 million pounds in 2009, and averaged a record 145.7 million pounds from 2012–2018 before declining to an average of 123.6 million pounds from 2019–2023.
The SNE fishery reached its peak in 1997, with landings at 21.8 million pounds, accounting for roughly 26 per cent of U.S. lobster landings. Since then, landings have consistently dipped, hitting its lowest point of 1.7 million pounds in 2021, making up just one per cent of domestic landings.
Cermaq Completes Salmon Cycle with Zero Lice Treatments
Cermaq Canada recently announced that its operations in Ahousaht First Nation territory completed a full salmon production cycle without a mechanical sea lice treatment.
Cermaq Canada, the Canadian arm of major salmon farmer Cermaq, said it conducted 56 mechanical sea lice treatments in 2022 to keep a 1.93 annual lice level. In the past 12 months, the company has conducted zero treatments with a lice level of 0.30.
David Kiemele, Managing Director, Cermaq Canada said “This phenomenal result has been the culmination of joint efforts of MHSS and Cermaq Canada to first identify a clear goal that respected the Ahousaht First Nation’s knowledge of their lands and waters and what would be required of our company to operate within their Hahulli. Second, the ability of our incredible team at Cermaq Canada to make that goal a reality through world leading innovative technologies and practices that were fit for purpose across our sites in Ahousaht Territory.”
DFO regulations state that salmon farmers must have sea lice levels below a 2.8 motile lice threshold during outmigration. Ahousaht’s Protocol Agreement with Cermaq Canada stipulates that sea lice levels must not exceed 1.5 motile lice during the outmigration and 2.5 lice through the remainder of the year, the group shared in a joint press release.
Cermaq explained that sea lice are naturally occurring parasites in both wild and farmed salmon.
