Question Period Note: Transformation of the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation

Transformation of the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation

Our government recognizes the important role that the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation – also known as FFMC - has played in the lives of freshwater fish harvesters, including those in remote and northern Indigenous communities, for the last 50 years.

We are committed to transforming the Crown corporation so that it remains competitive in today’s open market and continues to meet the needs of harvesters into the future.

Until this transformation is complete, the FFMC will continue to operate under is current mandate and market conditions.

FFMC operating performance and environment
Our government recognizes the significant economic challenges that COVID-19, the effects of climate change, and changing market demands have imposed on the commercial freshwater fishing and fish marketing industry.

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 maintain, market and sell its inventories.

With those measures in place, I am hopeful that the industry is better able to weather the impacts of its new operating environment.

• 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 was established to operate on a self-sustaining basis without government appropriations.
• Over the past ten years, the Corporation’s operating environment has experienced significant change. Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba withdrew from the Act in favour of an open market in 2011 and 2012, and 2017 respectively, while Alberta closed its commercial in-land fishery in 2014. This leaves the Northwest Territories as the only actively participating jurisdiction under the FFMA.
• 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. A ministerial advisory panel was established to explore ways to transform FFMC to remain modern and competitive in the open market.
• Based on the Ministerial Advisory Panel’s advice, the Minister appointed Kevin Anderson as Interlocutor on the FFMC in September 2019, who engaged 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 Fish Harvesters to advise him in his recommendation to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.
• In September 2020, the Interlocutor submitted a report of findings and recommendations for the Minister’s consideration. The report recommends that Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) commit to continue working with the Interim Committee to transform the FFMC, and provide support to the Interim Committee to secure administrative and technical expertise to allow it to formalize its role in representing fish harvesters in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories.
• On January 21, 2021, the former Minister announced receipt of the Interlocutor’s report, and commitment to supporting the Interim Committee in pursuing an effective transformation of the FFMC to a harvester-led entity.
• DFO has been working with the Interim Committee to secure administrative and technical expertise to formalize its role in representing fish harvesters in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories. And has acted as the Interim Committee’s secretariat while administrative capacity and expertise were being secured. A key priority to-date has been supporting the Interim Committee in its efforts to seek broad support for its harvester-led model from the harvester community and regional Indigenous organizations and governments.
• The Interim Committee established itself as the Freshwater Fish Harvesters Association, Inc. (FFHA), a not-for-profit corporation. DFO will seek to provide sufficient time and capacity for the FFHA to conduct necessary due diligence work on operations, design of an effective harvester-led co-operative model, and thorough engagement with harvester-co-operatives and other organizations to co-ordinate participation in the initiative prior to negotiations.
• The FFHA provided a letter the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard on August 5, 2021, outlining its concerns regarding DFO’s delay in providing project support. In that letter, which was also provided to first ministers and fisheries ministers in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the Northwest Territories, the FFHA questioned DFO’s commitment to providing the group with the support to continue with the process. Delays in providing support to the FFHA in August were unavoidable due to the federal writ period which precluded finalization of an agreement with the FFHA at that time.
• FFMC has been materially impacted by the COVID-19 global health crisis, which was initially felt through reduced demand in March 2020. FFMC encountered a significant drop in customer demand. Correspondingly, the closure or restricted operations of virtually all dine-in restaurants in the food service industry around the world related to COVID-19 resulted in a prolonged decline in sales revenue. In response, during the spring of 2020 fishing season, the Corporation limited fish deliveries to species where demand existed, reduced operating costs and discretionary spending, aggressively targeted new sales markets, particularly in retail, and reduced its staffing complement. However, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to be felt until after the crisis has passed, with expected residual effects as some existing clients may not recover. FFMC plans include strategies to operate more effectively in its competitive market environment, notably by shifting from a supply-driven marketing model, to one that is driven by customer demand.

None