Ottawa’s “plan to make a plan” for BC’s salmon farmers is almost done

“I believe Canada can become a global leader in the next generation of aquaculture production,” says Federal Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson.

By Fabian Dawson
SeaWestNews

Ottawa’s long-promised “plan to make a plan” that will decide the future of salmon farming in British Columbia is in the final stages, says Federal Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson.

Responding to questions from SeaWestNews at a press conference today, Thompson said: “The report is with ISED (Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada) and will be released very shortly. It is certainly in the final stages.”  

“Over the past number of weeks, there’s been over 110 engagements with stakeholders, Indigenous peoples, First Nations, and any individual or group that wanted to participate (in the consultation process),” she said.

When asked directly whether Prime Minister Mark Carney’s administration would revisit the activist-induced aquaculture policies for BC, introduced under his predecessor, Thompson avoided a clear answer.

“I am waiting, as many others are, to read that report, and I think our conversations will go from there,” she told media during the press conference to conclude this week’s Canadian Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers (CCFAM) meeting in Nunavut.

In her opening remarks, Thompson emphasized the importance of working together across jurisdictions to grow aquaculture sustainably, highlighting the need to share best practices, maintain strong environmental standards, and invest in innovative technologies.

“I believe Canada can become a global leader in the next generation of aquaculture production,” she said.

“Aquaculture plays an important role in supplying Canada and the world with a sustainable and healthy source of seafood, and I was happy that this topic featured prominently in the council’s agenda,” said Kent Smith, Nova Scotia’s Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, reiterating that the provinces are best placed for the continued regulation of the sector.

The much-anticipated consultation process for the BC Transition Plan was announced last September after the Trudeau-era government released a   ‘draft salmon farming transition framework’, which was blasted as aspirational but lacking concrete steps, timelines, or funding commitments. The ISED report, which Minister Thompson said will be released soon, has been developed by an interdepartmental task force to refine recommendations outlined in Ottawa’s draft transition framework.

Currently, ocean-raised salmon contribute over $1.17 billion annually to B.C.’s economy and remain the province’s most valuable agri-food export. But that figure is already nearly half of what the sector once generated before the Trudeau government under pressure from anti-fish farming activists, announced its plan to ban open-net salmon farms in B.C. by 2029.

That policy directly contradicted repeated findings from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ own scientists, whose peer-reviewed studies concluded that salmon farms in BC pose less than a one-percent risk to migrating wild salmon stocks.

Two recently published studies have also questioned the science used to enact the proposed 2029 ban. One found no measurable decline in sea lice levels after the closure of salmon farms in the Discovery Islands. Another, a 20-year analysis, concluded that BC salmon farms pose no more than minimal risk to wild salmon.

Cumulatively since 2020, Ottawa’s decisions have shut down about 45 percent of B.C.’s salmon farms and triggered mass layoffs.

“The British Columbia salmon farming ban needs to be promptly rethought before investment and commercial commitments dry up. The decision to effectively kill the industry was made without serious scientific input, including that of DFO scientists, and largely in response to pressure from NGO activists. An independent international review of salmon farming science is urgently needed,” Ken Coates, director of Indigenous Affairs at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, noted recently.

The BC Salmon Farmers Association (BCSFA) has said if Prime Minister Carney allows the current 2029 salmon farming phase-out to stand, British Columbia faces staggering losses.

More than 4,500 full-time jobs will vanish, many of them in rural and coastal communities where aquaculture is the backbone of prosperity. Payrolls worth $259 million will disappear, along with $1.17 billion in annual economic activity and $435 million in GDP. Entire supply chains, from boat builders to feed suppliers, risk collapse.

The damage would strike hardest at Indigenous communities. Over 1,000 Indigenous workers and dozens of Rights Holder Nations who are partners in every BC salmon farm stand to lose $134 million in annual benefits and decades of progress toward economic self-determination. For many First Nations, aquaculture is not just an industry, but a foundation for reconciliation, food security, and hope for the next generation.

Beyond jobs and rights, Ottawa’s policy undercuts national priorities. Replacing B.C. salmon with imports will drive up prices, spike carbon emissions, and force taxpayers to shoulder as much as $9 billion in compensation costs.

It doesn’t have to be this way said Brian Kingzett, Executive Director of the BCSFA.

He said with supportive legislation and science-based policies from the Carney administration, the sector could double its output by 2030, reaching $2.5 billion in annual economic activity, contributing $930 million to GDP, and creating 9,000 jobs with $560 million in wages.

This growth, he said, can happen alongside innovation in containment technology and continued stewardship agreements with First Nations partners.

Main image shows Federal Fisheries Minister Joanne Thompson