Fish feud: Atlantic Canada salmon farmers, conservationists clash over promised federal funding

A salmon river state of war is churned-up up the ethel waters of the Atlantic provinces

A salmon spat is bubbling up in Atlantic Canada.

On one side are fish farmers who raise salmon in ocean pens. On the other is a conservation group called the Atlantic Salmon Federation.

At stake is more than $80 million of new federal money, and where it should go.

The conflict went public earlier this month when Tom Taylor, executive director of the Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney and Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson.

The letter demands that the federation not receive any money from a new $81.7-million federal fund to stabilize and rebuild wild Atlantic Salmon populations.

The fund is meant to help restore wild Atlantic salmon. Several Atlantic salmon species are considered endangered.

In his letter, Taylor calls the federation a “foreign-funded, activist organization” that wants to destroy Atlantic Canada’s farmed salmon industry.

Taylor says the federation is involved in campaigns with misleading information to turn people against eating farmed salmon.

"I know they still do conservation work that is valued," he said.

"But they have crossed a line when they have brought this misinformation intentionally forward on the quality of our products."

One such campaign is called “Off the Table," the Canadian offshoot of an international effort to get the hospitality industry to remove farmed salmon from their menus.

Its website and social media posts claim farmed salmon is bad for the environment, bad for people and bad for wild salmon.

Taylor said the claims are designed to scare consumers.

The association is asking the federal government to review the federation’s charitable status and block it from receiving any of the new money.

“We feel that is a significant threat,” he said, adding that he worries the money could be used for “campaigns that are anti-aquaculture.”

Taylor says Statistics Canada 2024 data shows Atlantic Canada’s salmon farming sector employs 9,400 people and creates $3.2 billion in economic activity each year.

The industry also supports over 1,400 local businesses, many in rural communities, he said.

Neville Crabbe, vice-president of communications for the Atlantic Salmon Federation, says the “Off the Table” campaign focuses on educating people in the hospitality industry about the negative environmental effects of farmed salmon.

“We're a wild Atlantic salmon conservation organization,” Crabbe says. “We've been a principled critic of the industry because of its negative environmental consequences for over two decades.”

He also rejects the idea that the federation is trying to shut down the industry, saying the federation is just opposed to geographic expansion of fish farming.

Pressed on how that position fits into a campaign urging people to not serve farmed salmon at all, Crabbe says the aim was to educate consumers to make their own choice.

As for Taylor's assertion that the federation is "foreign-funded," Crabbe maintains the organization's ability to attract support around the world is one of its strengths.

The federation is already looking to make the most of the funding.

On the day Taylor released his letter, the federation announced it would supplement the government’s money with $25 million raised from individuals and foundations.

The federation views wild Atlantic salmon as a keystone species that plays a unique role in keeping river ecosystems healthy. The group says the fish are also important to the region’s culture and local economies.

From the fish farmers’ perspective, the federation is attacking a lawful and important Atlantic Canadian industry.

According to Taylor, his organization is not against wild salmon.

He points to a program called the Fundy Salmon Recovery program that includes Indigenous partners, scientists, governments and his organization.

“There is conservation being done by other groups that could use this [funding],” Taylor says.

Atlantic fish farmers are also watching developments on the West Coast.

In June 2024, Ottawa announced it will ban open net-pen salmon farming in British Columbia coastal waters by June 30, 2029.

That decision applies to B.C., where Ottawa has control.

In Atlantic Canada, the provinces have jurisdiction. But Taylor worries about pressure to shut down offshore fish farming spreading.

For now, both sides are digging in.

Taylor has not heard back from the prime minister but hopes the federation takes note of the farmers' concerns.

“I’m hoping that this will stop … and they return to their legitimate conservation focus.”

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Reporter/Editor

Vernon Ramesar is a reporter and video and radio journalist originally based in Trinidad. He now lives in Halifax.

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