B.C. salmon farmers fear the American market for Canadian farmed salmon could shrink by 32 to 40 per cent, as a result of 25 per cent tariffs imposed today by the U.S. on Canadian goods exported to the U.S., resulting in more than 1,000 job losses across Canada.
Salmon farming in Canada generates more than $1 billion in annual economic activity, says the BC Salmon Farmers Association, and employs 4,500 workers across Canada.
About 70 per cent of the farmed salmon raised in B.C. and the Maritime provinces is sold into to the U.S. Meanwhile, much of the wild-caught sockeye and pink salmon sold in B.C. stores now comes from Alaska.
The BC Salmon Farmers Association says tariffs could shrink the American market by 32 to 40 per cent. In addition to that direct impact, there may also be indirect impacts on the industry, as supply chains get gummed up with tariffs and counter-tariffs.
“Salmon farming relies on an integrated supply chain built on products from Canada and the U.S., from ingredients in salmon feed to food-safe packaging, with many suppliers and services in between,” the association said in a news release.
The association estimates the tariffs could result in 1,100 to 1,195 job losses across Canada, and result in a $155 million to $168 million reduction in GDP.
B.C. salmon farmers alone could lose $131.5 million to $142.4 million a year in revenue, the association estimates.
An even greater threat to the industry than American tariffs is the Canadian government. The Trudeau government plans to phase out open-net salmon farming in B.C. by 2029, though it has no plans for a similar phase-out in Atlantic Canada.
“The B.C. salmon farming sector is already operating in an unprecedented environment of business uncertainty due to current federal decisions actively discouraging technological and job investments,” the association said in a press release.
“Tariffs will place another substantial and unnecessary burden on Canada’s already threatened salmon farming sector.”
