Aquaculture – “Sometimes you don’t know what you have until you’ve lost it.”

PM Mark Carney has warned Canadians to be wary of what they stand to lose…For BC’s salmon farming sector, that means thousands of jobs, food security, Indigenous-led prosperity and a future rooted in science.

By Fabian Dawson
SeaWestNews

When Prime Minister Mark Carney said, “Sometimes you don’t know what you have until you’ve lost it,” he was responding to America’s aggressive tariffs and protectionist policies that are reshaping the global economic landscape.

But his words also ring with painful clarity in the context of Canada’s own self-inflicted wounds, especially the pending 2029 ban on ocean-based salmon farming in British Columbia.

If Ottawa follows through on this political maneuver to appease activist groups, many of them funded by U.S. foundations bent on killing Canadian jobs, it won’t just be salmon farmers who pay the price. Canada as a whole stands to lose something irreplaceable. And we may only realize its value once it’s too late.

Multiple peer reviewed studies and reviews by Canadian and international fisheries experts confirm that well-regulated open net salmon farms pose minimal risk to wild salmon populations.

But under pressure from activist campaigns and misinformation, former PM Justin Trudeau, along with a cohort of activist influenced BC ministers, chose to ignore the science in favour of optics and votes.

If PM Carney allows this reckless policy to continue, this is what Canada stands to lose:

We’ll lose thousands of jobs. At least 4,560 full-time, well-paid positions directly tied to salmon farming will disappear, along with thousands more in trucking, processing, marine support, equipment, and logistics. This blow will be felt most acutely in rural and coastal communities, where aquaculture has become a rare source of sustainable prosperity.

We’ll lose over $1.17 billion in annual economic activity and more than $435 million in GDP every year. Payrolls will shrink by $259 million, wiping out incomes that sustain families and small businesses in regions where few alternatives exist.

We’ll lose ground in reconciliation. More than 1,000 Indigenous workers will see their livelihoods vanish. Coastal First Nations, who have built partnerships and stewardship roles in the salmon farming sector, stand to lose $134 million in annual benefits, not just in dollars, but in progress toward economic self-determination. In BC today, all salmon farming is done in partnership with First Nations.

We’ll lose the intricate supply chain that supports this industry. Over 1,400 local vendors and service providers facing $437 million in lost spending. Many of them, from boat builders to feed producers, will simply fold.

We’ll lose our food sovereignty. Salmon is Canada’s top agri-food export from BC producing over 50,000 tonnes annually. Without it, we’ll rely more on imports from Chile and Norway, increasing our exposure to global market fluctuations and higher prices.

We’ll lose climate ground. Flying in salmon from overseas will spike our emissions to the equivalent of adding 84,000 more cars to our roads. It’s a bizarre way to fight climate change, especially when domestic farmed salmon already boasts one of the lowest carbon footprints of any protein.

We’ll lose taxpayer money. Billions of it. Ottawa could be on the hook for over $9 billion in payouts, compensation, and subsidies to cover the fallout of its own decision, including the unproven, high-cost land-based alternatives that activists champion without evidence.

We’ll lose social stability. In many First Nations and coastal communities, aquaculture has been the difference between poverty and possibility. Removing it means   a return to welfare lines, increased depression, and tragically, higher suicide risks, especially among youth.

We’ll lose innovation and investment. The sector was poised to inject $1.4 billion into sustainable technologies and new partnerships by 2050, creating 10,000 new jobs and anchoring Canada’s “Blue Economy” ambitions. All of that is now at risk.

And most of all, we’ll lose credibility as a country that claims to follow science, respect Indigenous rights, promote sustainable food, and lead on climate action.

Prime Minister Carney’s words should be a warning, not a eulogy. Because if this ban proceeds, Canadians will one day look back at the salmon farming sector, at the jobs, the food, the innovation, the reconciliation, and the hope it provided and realize we destroyed it for nothing.

And by then, it’ll be too late.

“Sometimes you don’t know what you have until you’ve lost it.”

(Main image shows some of BC’s young salmon farmers – From L to R – Terra MacDonald, Fish Health Manager, Mowi Canada West – Kaitlin Guitard, Fish Health & Food Safety Laboratory Manager, Mowi Canada West – Benjamin Del Curto, Business Development Manager, OXZO – Andrew Nixon, Community Engagement Coordinator, BCSFA)