The Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance has released a report highlighting what it describes as an imbalance in Canada’s food system.
The report shows a decline in farmed salmon production in British Columbia, which has traditionally led national output.
According to the alliance, farmed salmon production in B.C. has fallen by more than 40 per cent since 2015. Over the same period, Canada’s imports of farmed salmon have reached about $700 million annually.
“Salmon remains Canada’s most consumed seafood,” said Brian Kingzett, executive director of the B.C. Salmon Farmers Association. “The data clearly show demand is strong. With long-term regulatory certainty, Canada has a real opportunity to produce more of this food at home.”
The report said much of the growth in supply has come from increased imports from Norway and Chile.
The B.C. Salmon Farmers Association said that with renewed regulatory certainty and improved investment confidence, the sector could generate up to $2.5 billion in annual economic output and about 9,000 jobs by 2030.
Kingzett said farmers have not seen the capital investment flowing into British Columbia that would support increased production.
“We are taking more steps to make sure we further reduce any potential risk to the marine environment and wild salmon,” Kingzett said. “We have such a tiny footprint. All the salmon farms in British Columbia wouldn’t occupy even half of Stanley Park.”
He noted land-based salmon farming remains limited.
“We farm on land a little bit right now because our hatcheries are on land,” Kingzett said. “On Vancouver Island, we don’t have enough electricity or enough flat land for the industrial scale it would take. We simply don’t have the physical capacity to do that.”
Kingzett said a viable financial business model for fully land-based farms does not currently exist, but added that production expansion on the freshwater side can be achieved through post-smolt systems. The approach involves growing salmon as long as possible in freshwater before transferring them to the ocean, reducing the time spent at sea.
“With the right framework in place, B.C. salmon farmers are ready to support Canada’s food system and help build a stronger Canada,” Kingzett said.
