Ministers see a positive future for fisheries and aquaculture in Canada

Tor-Eddie Fossbakk At the ACFAM meeting last November, the ministers established a federal-provincial-territorial marketing work group. The group brings together fish management and marketing experts to explore opportunities for strategic marketing of Atlantic seafood products. The ministers received an overview of work to date, including the group’s plans for the coming months and early actions to be initiated. On aquaculture, Provincial Ministers agreed with their federal colleague that collaborative work needs to continue to enhance cooperative initiatives that meet the objectives of each jurisdiction's development. These efforts are necessary in order to increase the competitiveness of the aquaculture sector of Atlantic Canada. Ministers also discussed their upcoming mission to Chile, including opportunities to work with the Chilean government, academic community and producers. Ministers agreed that closer collaboration with like-minded countries such as Chile has the potential of creating important strategic advantages for Canadian producers. Federal Minister, Loyola Hearn, went on to thank his colleagues for their ongoing support in his government's efforts to modernize the 140-year-old Fisheries Act and took the opportunity to present his colleagues with an update on the legislation and to answer their questions. The ACFAM consists of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers from the Atlantic Provinces, Quebec, Nunavut and the federal government.