Saving Seafood

International consortium to study great white shark behavior in Atlantic Ocean

December 2, 2020 — The great white shark now has an international consortium of governments, universities, and private groups — including authorities from Massachusetts — studying the fearsome predator’s behavior in the northwest Atlantic Ocean.

The sharks have returned to coastal New England and southern Canada in increasing numbers during recent years, sometimes leading to fatal interactions with humans it encounters who are swimming or surfing in the ocean.

Among other completed and forthcoming research the consortium plans to use hundreds of receivers to acoustically track great whites from Rhode Island to Canada in hopes of eventually creating “shark forecast maps” that will alert swimmers when shark activity along beaches is at its most intense, said Megan Winton,chief research scientist for the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy which provides the popular SHARKTIVITY app.

Read the full story at The Boston Globe

Canadian organizations seeking comment on new salmonid farming code of practice

November 19, 2020 — The National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC) and the Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance (CAIA) are seeking comment on a draft of a new code of practice for farming salmonids in the country.

The Code of Practice for the Care and Handling of Farmed Salmonids has been the result of two years of work via a multi-stakeholder approach across relevant stakeholders in various agriculture sectors. The code is intended to serve as guideline for sound management and welfare practices for the farming of salmonids, including requirements for “rearing units, feeding, transportation, and other animal husbandry practices.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Can B.C. salmon farmers play a bigger role in post-pandemic economic recovery?

November 18, 2020 — B.C. salmon farmers are hoping for greater inclusion in the province’s post-pandemic economic recovery plan, following the release of a new report that shows clearer government policy would trigger innovation, technology and infrastructure investments by the sector worth $1.4 billion by 2050.

The report, published by independent economics consulting firm RIAS Inc., and commissioned by the BC Salmon Farmers Association (BCSFA), noted the investments would generate $44 billion in economic output and create 10,000 new jobs. But first the provincial and federal governments need to establish a predictable policy approach.

“As an essential service, salmon farmers in B.C. played their part by not only keeping existing staff employed but by hiring additional staff to help them manage the COVID situation,” Doug Blair, president of RIAS Inc. said in a statement. “By continuing their operations, BC salmon farmers helped to cushion the negative impacts of the pandemic for more than 1,700 local vendors across B.C. that serve the sector, like fish processors, transporters, technology suppliers, boat operators, as well as local restaurants, hotels and businesses. And as we weather the second wave of this pandemic, the salmon farming industry remains uniquely positioned to play a critical role in B.C.’s recovery strategy – particularly in remote, coastal and Indigenous communities that are most in need at this time.”

Read the full story at Yahoo! News

Indigenous people in Nova Scotia exercised their right to catch lobster. Now they’re under attack.

October 27, 2020 — When Mike Sack handed out lobster licenses to Indigenous fishers in Nova Scotia last month, he expected some pushback from commercial fishers. But the Sipekne’katik First Nation chief did not foresee the violence to come.

Mi’kmaq fishers say non-Indigenous commercial fishers in the Maritime province have threatened them, cut their lines, pulled their traps from the water and formed flotillas to intimidate them on the waters of St. Mary’s Bay.

Read the full story at The Washington Post

US Trade Commission hears testimony on CETA’s impact on US lobster exports

October 1, 2020 — The U.S. International Trade Commission heard testimony Thursday, 1 October, on the effect the trade agreement between Canada and the European Union has had on America’s lobster industry.

The Canada-E.U. pact, known as the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), has had a detrimental effect on U.S. lobstermen and exporters since it took effect three years ago, according to Robert DeHaan, the vice president for government affairs for the National Fisheries Institute. DeHaan said the deal meant U.S. exporters faced 8 percent tariffs on live lobsters and up to 20 percent on value-added products while their Canadian counterparts paid no levies on the same products, providing them with a significant competitive advantage.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Senator Collins Urges Administration to Work to Find Agreement with Canada on Fishing Gray Zone

September 17, 2020 — The following was released by The Office of Senator Susan Collins (R-ME):

U.S. Senator Susan Collins sent a letter to President Trump urging the Administration to work with Maine and Canadian fisheries to find a solution to conservation issues that unfairly harm Maine’s seafood industry.

Lobstermen and fishermen who work in the Gray Zone—an area located approximately ten miles off the coast of Maine between the U.S. and Canada—are growing increasingly frustrated that their Canadian counterparts who fish in the same areas are not required to follow the same regulations, and thus are undermining American protections and threatening the sustainability of the stock.  This disparity undermines American protections, threatens the sustainability of the stocks, and causes dangerous interactions at sea.

“Maine lobstermen and fishermen have been waiting far too long for a resolution to the Gray Zone dispute, and the toll it is taking on their businesses, their safety, and the resources on which their livelihoods depend continues to mount,” wrote Senator Collins.  “I look forward to working with your Administration to address the inequities presented by the Gray Zone in order to protect our seafood harvesters and invaluable natural resources.”

Generations of Maine lobstermen have marked the tails of egg-bearing females they catch with a v-notch and returned them to the water, allowing them to lay eggs, grow larger, and reproduce in future years.  Maine lobstermen also abide by a maximum size limit, tossing back oversized lobsters in order to keep the stock strong.  Because Canada does not impose such conservation measures on its fisheries, a v-notched or oversized lobster tossed back by a Maine lobsterman can be caught by a Canadian lobsterman merely yards away and brought to market.

Read the full release here

Study Discovers Bias in Lice Counts on Farmed Salmon When Done by Farm Operators

September 14, 2020 — Mandatory self-monitoring can save taxpayers money, but a study out of Simon Fraser University found bias in the routine counting of sea-lice on farmed salmon in pens off the coast of British Columbia.

The scientists found that industry’s monthly counts two species of sea-lice are underestimated significantly. Canada’s federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans found the numbers increased by a factor of nearly 2 for one species of lice and just over a factor of 1 (in other words, doubling the amount) for another. Less lice means less delousing treatments, which are costly.

Read the full story at Seafood News

USITC investigating effects of CETA on US lobster industry

September 2, 2020 — The United States International Trade Commission (USITC) has announced it is planning to investigate the impacts of a Canada-E.U. trade agreement on the U.S. lobster industry.

The investigation was kicked off by a letter from the United States Trade Representative requesting the USITC provide a complete overview of the U.S. and Canadian lobster industries, including the trends in exports between both countries and the U.K. and E.U. That letter was itself kicked off by an executive order from U.S. President Donald Trump, intended to boost the U.S. lobster industry.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

U.S. trade investigation to study lobster tariffs

September 2, 2020 — The U.S. International Trade Commission has embarked on an investigation into “possible negative effects” on the American lobster industry from Canada’s trade deal with the European Union.

The commission said it will investigate the overall economic impact of the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement on the volume of U.S. exports of lobster to the European Union and the United Kingdom.

That trade deal between Canada and the EU removed all tariffs on imported Canadian lobsters and gave Canada’s lobster suppliers a clear advantage in the EU market, where U.S. suppliers faced an 8% tariff on their lobsters.

Lobster fishing is based mostly in New England and is one of the region’s the most lucrative marine industries. Massachusetts is the biggest exporter of lobster, behind Maine. Gloucester is the Bay State’s top port when it comes to lobster landings, while Rockport is in the top five.

Read the full story at the Gloucester Daily Times

Trump turns an election-year eye on Canadian lobster

August 31, 2020 — The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has launched a trade investigation to assess the impact of Canada’s worldwide lobster exports on the U.S. lobster industry.

It’s the latest election year overture aimed at Maine, where lobster, valued at $468 million US in 2019, is the state’s largest export. It is also where Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Trump are trailing in the polls.

On Aug. 24, the United States International Trade Commission announced it will investigate the possible negative effects of the Canada-Europe Trade Agreement (CETA) on American lobster exports.

The investigation was requested by U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer. The investigation will also examine tariff treatment of Canadian lobster in the United Kingdom, China and other countries.

“We’re not sure what it means,” said Geoff Irvine, executive director of the Lobster Council of Canada.

Read the full story at CBC News