Question Period Note: Transformation of the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation

• Our Government recognizes the important role that the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation (FFMC) has played in the lives of freshwater fish harvesters, including those in remote and northern Indigenous communities, since it was created over 50 years ago.
• However, the withdrawl of Manitboa, Saskatchewan and Ontario from the Corporation in recent years has driven the need for a transformation. We are committed to transforming the Crown corporation so that it remains modern and competitive in today’s open market and continues to meet the needs of harvesters into the future.
• An important step in the transformation included appointing an interlocutor to engage with fish harvesters, Indigenous groups, and other partners from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and the Northwest Territories to establish an Interim Committee of Fish Harvesters.
• Based on these engagements, it is clear that harvesters’ interests must be at the center of discussions on the future of the freshwater industry.
• [Earlier this month (TBD)], I welcomed the recommendation of Interlocutor on the Transformation of the FFMC that Fisheries and Oceans Canada should continue to work with and support the interlocutor-established Interim Committee to pursue an effective transformation of the FFMC to a harvester-led entity.
• The success of this transformation will be enhanced by the support of stakeholders and partners, including harvesters, local communities which rely on freshwater fisheries, Indigenous communities, and provincial and territorial governments.
• Until this transformation is complete, the FFMC will continue to operate under is current mandate and market conditions.

COVID-19 impact on the FFMC and freshwater fish harvesters
• Our Government recognizes the significant economic challenges COVID-19 has imposed on the commercial freshwater fish industry, especially for northern Indigenous communities.
• We immediately responded by ensuring adequate supports were provided for the stability of the industry and well-being of communities.
• I am aware that fish harvesters have been able to take advantage of government supports such as the Fish Harvester Benefit, the Fish Harvester Grant, and the Indigenous Community Support Fund to address immediate needs and provide harvesters income support.
• I am pleased to note the successful implementation of the Surplus Food Rescue Program between the Fisher River Cree Nation and the FFMC that ensure Indigenous communities in Manitoba and Saskatchewan had access to nutritious fish protein.
• The Department communicates closely with the FFMC to identify how we can work together to support fish harvesters during these difficult times.
• As a result, I know that the FFMC is working tirelessly to find solutions to market its fish both domestically and internationally to improve its returns and provide stability to the fish harvesters it serves, including through maintained efforts to market and sell its inventories.
• In light of these measures, and with the support of the FFMC, I am hopeful that the industry is better able to weather the impacts of COVID-19 which are harvesters’ main economic source of income.

• Headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the FFMC is a federal Crown corporation established in 1969.
• Enabled under the Freshwater Fish Marketing Act (Act, FFMA), FFMC has the exclusive right to market and trade freshwater fish in interprovincial and export markets in designated products supplied by participating jurisdictions. FFMC’s mandate is to gain the highest economic returns possible for the commercial fish producers it serves, while operating on a self-sustaining basis without government appropriations.
• Over the past ten years, the Corporation’s operating environment has experienced significant change. Ontario and Saskatchewan withdrew from the Act in 2011 and 2012, respectively, in favour of an open market. Alberta remains a signatory to the FFMA, but closed its commercial in-land fishery in 2014. Manitoba withdrew from the Act in December 2017 creating an open market in the province, leaving the Northwest Territories as the only remaining participating jurisdiction under the FFMA.
• Given these changes, the FFMC is no longer positioned to deliver on its original mandate:
o inland fish harvesters feel unrepresented in FFMC decision-making under its current governance model;
o as a Crown corporation, FFMC has less access to development grants and contributions than non-governmental operations; and,
o loss of monopsony forces competition with private marketers, increasing operational pressures.
• However, FFMC continues to support underserved communities:
o 80 per cent of harvesters supplying the FFMC are Indigenous (First Nations and Métis);
o fishing forms an essential part of social and cultural life in rural and remote communities;
o and, if marketing were left solely to private buyers, harvesters may realize lower returns.
• Recognizing these changes, in 2018, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans was mandated to assess industry capacity to transform the FFMC into a harvester-led governance and ownership model. An Ministerial advisory panel was established to explore ways to transform FFMC to remain modern and competitive in the open market. In 2019, the Government of Canada released the Panel’s final report.
• The Minister appointed Kevin Anderson as Interlocutor on the FFMC in September 2019. Since his appointment, Mr. Anderson held more than 30 engagement sessions with harvesters and other stakeholders in the freshwater fishery, as well as Indigenous leaders, non-governmental economic development organizations, and representatives of federal and provincial governments. In March 2020, the Interlocutor convened the Interim Committee of Inland Harvesters to advise him in his recommendation to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.
• In September 2020, the Interlocutor submitted a report on the Transformation of the FFMC for the Minister’s consideration. The report recommends that DFO commit to continue working with the Interim Committee to transform the FFMC. For this work to continue, the Interlocutor recommended that Fisheries and Oceans Canada provide support to the Interim Committee in securing administrative and technical expertise to allow it to formalize its role in representing fish harvesters in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories.
• On January X, 2021, the Minister announced receipt of the Interlocutor’s report on the Transformation of the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation, and commitment to supporting the Interim Committee in pursuing an effective transformation of the FFMC to a harvester-led entity.
• COVID-19 impact:
o In addition to the industry challenges and future direction of the FFMC, COVID-19 has had an impact on the FFMC’s employees, customers, and for supply chain partners, particularly fishers.
o The decline in sales revenues resulting from COVID-19-related closure or restricted operations of the foodservice industry around the world continues to add unknown and unparalleled challenges for the Corporation.
o As part of its ongoing efforts to mitigate the impact caused by COVID-19, FFMC has taken actions to align its operations with the new reality created by the pandemic (e.g., aligning fish harvesting and processing with consumer demand, aggressively targeting new sales markets, and reducing operating costs and discretionary spending).
o As a Crown Corporation, FFMC is not entitled to any Government’s suite of COVID-19 supports but its employees, fish harvesters, and Indigenous communities are eligible.

None