As one of the largest global aquaculture companies with annual sales of nearly USD 1 billion, Blacks Harbor, New Brunswick-based Cooke Aquaculture has no plans to slow down anytime soon. In fact, it is looking to vertically integrate its farming capacity in Chile, and has recently expanded its European and U.S. presence.
SeafoodSource recently caught up with Nell Halse, VP of communications for Cooke, to discuss how the company continues to expand its global reach and grow its True North salmon brand via marketing efforts that include hiring celebrity chef Rick Moonen as the brand’s spokesperson.
Blank: After your acquisition of Meridian Salmon Farms from Marine Harvest last year, do you plan to acquire additional aquaculture operations?
Halse: We have been very up-front that we are a growing company. There are certain areas in which we are looking to expand, but we don’t get into that until the deal is done. In Chile, we still only have our farming operations in the far south. We have chased a number of acquisitions to integrate our operations so that we have hatcheries and processing capacity as well as farming, but that hasn’t happened yet.
Blank: I understand that a case of infectious salmon anemia (ISA) was recently discovered at a farm that is part of Cooke’s Chilean subsidiary, Salmones Cupquelan. Is that true?
Halse: It is never good news to find a positive diagnosis, but Chile's National Fisheries and Aquaculture Service (Sernapesca) was quick to say that the company moved very quickly. ISA is a naturally-occurring virus in the world of salmon. There was a time when it was a devastating disease, but government, with science and industry, developed very strict sampling programs. You have to have frequent testing so you have early detection and quick action to remove the infected salmon. Chilean production is a fairly small percentage of our production.
Blank: How has the Meridian acquisition helped Cooke reach new markets and customers?
Halse: Scotland gave us access to markets that were already in place in the U.S. and elsewhere. The Scotland operation had access in Europe through Meridian’s Organic and Label Rouge labels. It gives us the opportunity to offer organic salmon to our customers, since the U.S. does not yet have organic standards for farmed salmon. Because we have a strong global sales approach, we strengthened the marketing strategy in Scotland. And we recently hired a senior VP of global sales and marketing, Andrew Young. Rather than each of the regions having their own sales and marketing, now there is a more global strategy.
Blank: Some U.S. retail buyers have reduced their buying of Chilean salmon and are buying more from Canada, Scotland and other countries. How has that helped grow sales of True North Salmon?
Halse: Demand is high (for Canadian salmon) and our relationships with influential people in the industry, such as Chef Rick Moonen, really help. If he does a TV show and talks about True North Salmon, we start to get messages right away on our web site, wondering where they can buy the product. Demand is partly due to the reputation of a certain region, but it is also marketing efforts. We have done a lot of market analysis, particularly in Canada and the U.S. The number one priority for people when they eat seafood is freshness. The longer the product is in transit, there is a change in quality. On the East Coast, we can get fish to market so much quicker than anyone from Scandinavia and Chile can. The freshness and proximity to the market is resonating with people, since customers equate freshness with quality.
Blank: Have you added new types of salmon products in recent months?
Halse: We have been increasing our focus on value-added. We are no longer just selling whole fish into the market. Customers can get a variety of products, including filets, portions, smoked salmon products and our hugely popular candied salmon. We are experimenting with packaging for further value-added products.
