Fisheries and Aquaculture
March 11, 2010
Province Releases
Seafood Industry Year in Review for 2009
The annual Seafood
Industry Year in Review publication was released today
by the Honourable Clyde Jackman, Minister of Fisheries
and Aquaculture. The report confirms that the
Newfoundland and Labrador seafood industry experienced a
challenging year in 2009 with a total value of $827
million, a decline of almost 22 per cent over 2008.
However, farmed salmon and trout sectors experienced a
rise in both production and market value.
"Clearly, 2009 was a difficult year in the province's
fishing industry," said Minister Jackman. "Seafood
prices were very much impacted by the global economic
conditions, which contributed to lower demand for
seafood products. There were depressed prices for key
species such as snow crab, shrimp and lobster. Yet we
are very encouraged by the performance in the
aquaculture industry. Notwithstanding exchange rates,
there are low inventories for crab and shrimp going into
the 2010 season and light ice conditions. Therefore, we
are hopeful of a better performance in 2010."
Minister Jackman noted that aquaculture production rose
18 per cent and market value for aquaculture products
increased by 45.9 per cent to $92 million in 2009, due
primarily to strong prices for Atlantic salmon and
trout.
Exchange rates placed additional pressure on the fishing
industry in 2009. This was especially true during the
later part of the season. The high Canadian dollar
relative to the United States dollar and the Euro meant
that there were lower returns for harvesters and
processors in this province.
The report also details employment data for the
province's fishing industry in 2009. Employment in the
province's fishing industry was down by 14 per cent,
with an average of 10,300 person years of employment.
There were 105 processing plants in operation in 2009,
as opposed to 115 in 2008. The shutdown in the
province's shrimp fishery in 2009 had a negative impact
on the amount of shrimp that was harvested for the year,
as well as employment levels in shrimp processing
plants. With the reduction in shrimp landings, there was
a decline of 19.3 per cent in overall plant employment.
The Provincial Government committed $800,000 to a
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) process in 2009 in an
effort to address long-term structural issues in the
fishing industry. The partners to the MOU are the Fish
Food and Allied Workers (FFAW) and Association of
Seafood Producers (ASP).
"Our government recognizes that serious global economic
challenges impacted the province's fishing industry in
2009," said Minister Jackman. "We also recognize that
the structural issues in the industry made for a more
difficult year for everyone involved. We are pleased to
be working with the industry to develop strategies to
reduce our susceptibility to sudden shifts in the global
economy in the future."
The Seafood Year in Review 2009 can be found at
www.fishaq.gov.nl.ca/publications/index.html#seafood
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Media contact:
Lori Lee Oates
Director of Communications
Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture
709-729-3733, 690-8403
oatesll@gov.nl.ca
2010 03 11
9:50 a.m.
