High Liner Foods is laying off roughly 9 percent of its workforce in its North American office.
In an announcement on 31 March, the company said the layoffs will result in 35 departures from the organization. It said the move is being made to “further align its cost structure with current market conditions.”
“These actions are part of a broader set of initiatives already underway, including disciplined margin management, cost reduction, and supply chain efficiency efforts, intended to mitigate the impact of sustained pressure from rising inflation, tariffs, and higher input costs and to strengthen the company's value proposition to customers and consumers,” High Liner said.
The move comes one month after High Liner posted its Q4 2025 and FY 2025 results, which revealed its adjusted EBITDA in Q4 2025 dropped by 18.9 percent and its FY 2025 adjusted EBITEDA dropped by 11.2 percent. The company’s gross profit also dropped 2.1 percent in FY 2025, despite the company posting a 7.1 percent increase in revenue.
“The company is confident that its actions will support a return to year-over-year adjusted EBITDA growth for fiscal 2026; however, current estimates indicate that first quarter results will be modestly below the prior year,” High Liner said.
That prediction of a modest reduction compared to Q1 2025 would mark two straight years of decreased performance in the first quarter. In Q1 2025, the company’s EBITDA dropped slightly compared to Q1 2024, which High Liner CEO Paul Jewer attributed to the timing of the Lenten season that year. Meanwhile, Q1 2024 saw the company’s adjusted EBITDA increase by 9.6 percent, despite lower sales volumes and sales values.
High Liner said that it experienced strong sales in Q1 2026, but external pressures have impacted its bottom line.
“Underlying promotional activity combined with rising input costs and tighter supply put pressure on margins and plant performance, delaying the realization of profitability improvements that the company expects to deliver in 2026,” High Liner said.
Jewer said during the company’s review of its FY 2025 results that it predicted headwinds it faced in Q4 2025 to continue into FY 2026 and that the company was planning to focus on margin improvement and leveraging some of its investments.
One of those investments was the company’s acquisition of the Mrs. Paul’s and Van de Kamp’s brands from Conagra Brands in June 2025.
"With disciplined margin management, cost reductions, and targeted supply chain efficiency initiatives, we are confident in our ability to offset higher raw material costs and tariffs,” Jewer said.
High Liner said further details on its layoffs and its plans will be distributed with its Q1 2026 financial results, which will be published in May 2026.
