Fisheries and Aquaculture
October 27, 2015
Investing in Seafood Sector Innovation
Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program Reaches 300 Project Milestone
The Provincial Government is continuing to support innovation in the province’s wild fishery and aquaculture sectors through the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program. This year the program is supporting 18 new projects, through an investment of approximately $1 million, bringing the total number of projects approved under the program since its inception in 2007 to 300.
“Three hundred projects is a significant milestone and it shows our government’s commitment to investing in new technologies to prepare our seafood industry to meet the demands of world markets. As global demand for seafood continues to increase, we must ensure that Newfoundland and Labrador is positioned to capitalize on new and expanding opportunities. We continue to support innovation and technological advancement in the areas of harvesting, fish farming, processing, and marketing to advance the seafood sector for the benefit of all industry players.”
- The Honourable Vaughn Granter, Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture
Since 2007, approximately $14 million has been invested through the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program which has helped to leverage approximately $42 million in funding from other project partners to support research, development and new opportunities for harvesters, processors and fish farmers in all regions of the province. The program has led to significant collaboration between the Provincial Government, industry and academic institutions such as Memorial University’s Fisheries and Marine Institute.
“Through the Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Resources and the Centre for Aquaculture and Seafood Development, the Fisheries and Marine Institute is pleased to support efforts to grow and strengthen the seafood industry. We look forward to continuing to work with our industry partners to build upon critical research and technology development in areas such as fish harvesting and processing. Such investments are essential to maintain our competitiveness globally through the modernization and enhancement of our seafood value chain.”
- Carey Bonnell, Head, School of Fisheries, Marine Institute
A listing of projects approved for funding under the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program for 2015-16 can be found in the attached backgrounder.
QUICK FACTS:
- Eighteen new projects have been funded this year under the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program bringing the total number of projects funded under the program since 2007 to 300.
- Approximately $14 million has been invested through the Fisheries Technology and New Opportunities Program since 2007 which has helped to leverage $42 million in funding from other project partners to support research, development and new opportunities for harvesters, processors and fish farmers in all regions of the province.
- The program has led to significant collaboration between the Provincial Government, industry and academic institutions such as Memorial University’s Fisheries and Marine Institute.
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Media contacts:
| Roger Scaplen
Director of Communications Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture 709-729-3733, 697-5267 rogerscaplen@gov.nl.ca |
Leslie Earle Public Relations and Communications Officer Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University 709-778-0677, 330-3918 leslie.earle@mi.mun.ca |
BACKGROUNDER
2015 FTNOP
Projects
|
Location |
Project
Proponent |
Project
Description |
Funding Amount |
|
Aquaculture Projects |
|||
|
St.
John’s/ Coast of Bays |
Memorial University (Ocean Sciences Centre) |
Evaluation of alternative methods for sea lice removal
at Atlantic salmon aquaculture sites, using cleaner fish, specifically
cunners and lumpfish,
that are native to the province. |
$100,000 |
|
St.
John’s/ Bay d’Espoir |
Nova
Fish Farms |
Rearing of a Danish strain of steelhead trout at the Marine
Institute prior to transfer to a cage site in Bay d’Espoir for
evaluation of their performance compared to traditionally used steelhead
strains. |
$65,857 |
|
Green Bay |
LBA
Enterprises Ltd. |
Purchase of a
through-ice mussel harvesting unit and related equipment to provide
year-round harvesting capability at the company’s mussel farm sites. |
$41,100 |
|
O’Donnell’s |
Merasheen Oysters Inc. |
Acquisition of a
floating upweller system to support higher growth and survival rates for
juvenile oysters than those introduced directly into farm sites. The new
system will help the company move toward becoming the first commercial
oyster producer in the province.
|
$38,080 |
|
Processing Projects |
|||
|
Nain
|
Torngat Fish Producers |
Purchase of new automated filleting and heading machine and
smoking system for arctic char to improve processing efficiency and
product quality. |
$100,000 |
|
New-Wes-Valley |
Beothic Fish Processors Ltd. |
Purchase and installation of a new automated high-precision
combination feeding and filleting system which produces high-yield
butterfly or single herring fillets. |
$100,000 |
|
Twillingate |
Shell-Ex |
Improvements to processing line to enable the processing of crab
shells in addition to existing processing capacity for shrimp shells at
the company’s marine bio-refinery. Project will also support
installation of a new burner capable of burning recycled canola oil. |
$87,600 |
|
Aqua
forte |
Aqua
Crab Producers Inc. |
Installation of new automated processing technology for
size-grading and sorting of snow crab sections. |
$63,180 |
|
Cape
Broyle |
Cape
Broyle Sea Products Ltd. |
Market analysis to
determine detailed customer product specifications for sea cucumber and
research and evaluation to determine ways to improve upon current
cutting equipment and tentacle removal options. |
$30,157 |
|
Province-wide |
Seafood Processors of Newfoundland and Labrador |
Technical analysis of fresh fish packaging systems to determine
which alternative packaging systems to styrofoam are best suited for
fresh fish shipments and more environmentally friendly. |
$23,550 |
|
Fleur De Lys |
PhocaLux International Inc. |
Research technical requirements and determine economic feasibility for
the establishment of a marine oil refining facility at the company’s
seal processing plant in Fleur De Lys. |
$13,926 |
|
Harvesting Projects |
|||
|
Cottlesville |
Hailey Bear Enterprises |
Purchase and installation of a multispecies mid-shore Mustad
Longline System to increase efficiency and product quality. |
$100,000 |
|
Bay
de Verde |
Quinlan Brothers Ltd. |
Installation and evaluation of an on-vessel bleeding and chilling
system for cod to enhance product quality. |
$100,000 |
|
Nain |
Torngat Fish Producers |
Development of new arctic char harvesting technology and evaluation and
development of a single vessel design to harvest both arctic char and
scallop. |
$38,461 |
|
Point Lance |
CHY
Enterprises |
Purchase and installation of an automatic net hauler on fishing
vessel. Installation of this technology will allow for quicker sorting
and handling of fish leading to higher product quality and reduced time
at sea. |
$16,800 |
|
Marketing Projects |
|||
|
Province-wide |
Fisheries Science, Stewardship and Sustainability Board |
Phase III of the Lobster and Halibut Traceability Strategy which
is implementing a consumer-based tracking system that allows consumers
to trace their seafood directly to the harvester. |
$61,472 |
|
Carmanville |
Eastern Fish Markets |
Support for marketing initiatives for the sale of live lobster |
$29,400 |
|
Nain |
Torngat Fish Producers |
Development of new marketing materials and new printed packaging
for arctic char |
$26,580 |
2015 10 27 11:50 a.m.