seafood industry

New program to groom seafood industry leaders

New program to groom seafood industry leaders

Fisheries Council of Canada aims to develop emerging leaders in wild-capture and aquaculture industries

By Fabian Dawson
SeaWestNews

The Fisheries Council of Canada (FCC) has launched a program to develop emerging leaders in the Canadian seafood industry through networking, programming and unique experiences along the supply chain.

The Future Leaders Canada program will enhance industry knowledge and leadership skills in the areas of government relations, production, sales, marketing, and the seafood community broadly, said the council’s president Paul Lansbergen. (pictured)

“The program is open to all employees across the seafood supply chain – wild-capture or aquaculture,” Lansbergen told SeaWestNews.

The program launched this week in Canada will be conducted in partnership with the National Fisheries Institute (NFI) of America, which has been grooming seafood industry leaders for the past 20 years.

“Our friends at the National Fisheries Institute have run their program for over 20 years with great success…the gap NFI filled in the US fish and seafood sector exists in Canada. The time is right to launch a similar program here,” said Lansbergen.

In addition to facility tours, Future Leaders Canada program students will get the opportunity to interact with different audiences that affect business decisions in the seafood industry.

Most of the program curriculum is applicable to both aquaculture and wild-capture fisheries and there are plans to visit a hatchery and fish farms,” said Lansbergen.

The curriculum includes opportunities to interact with parliamentarians and government officials who make legislative and regulatory decisions. Students will also get a chance to learn about how customers, such as retailers and restaurants, operate and what influences these customers buying decisions.

The application period is now open and closes March 29, 2019. For more information, visit the

 FCC website.

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