The Fish, Food, and Allied Workers Union (FFAW), which represents fishermen in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, is pushing for Canada’s Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to avoid further cuts to what it calls a “miniscule” total allowable catch for gulf shrimp.
According to the FFAW, a recent meeting of the Gulf of St. Lawrence Shrimp Advisory Committee suggested there is bad news on the way for shrimp harvesters in the 4R area as biomass estimates from the DFO indicate the need for further cuts to the quota. The FFAW said the cuts to the TAC could be as high as 33 percent.
That cut would be on top of already huge cuts the DFO made for the 2024 season. In 2023, the Gulf of St. Lawrence shrimp quota was 14,500 metric tons (MT), but the total quota dropped all the way to just 3,060 MT in 2024. Even the 2023 quota was a far cry from the 35,000 MT quota the fishery had as recently as 2015.
“There are enterprises already unable to operate and this will definitely be a final blow for most,” 4R Fleet Chair Rendell Genge, who attended the advisory committee meeting, said in a release from the FFAW.
FFAW Secretary-Treasurer Jason Spingle, who also attended the meeting, said the results the fleet got in 2024 run contrary to the cuts.
“These vessels had a positive fishery this year with increased catch rates compared to 2023 and achieved the same landings; there is absolutely no reason to reduce the quota in that area for 2025,” Spingle said.
The gulf shrimp fishery was already dealing with problems in 2024. In late March, Royal Greenland closed down a seafood-processing facility in Matane, Quebec due to long-term declines in shrimp quotas. The Fruits de mer de l'Est du Québec processing plant was then hit by a fire on 30 March just days after the closure, adding to the problems.
FFAW President Dwan Street – who was elected to the role in July – said the issues with the fishery are in part thanks to the DFO.
“The 4R fleet has been hung out to dry by DFO mismanagement and now they’re facing another significant blow. I will ensure this issue gets the attention it deserves,” Street said.
