Evidence of meeting #78 for Fisheries and Oceans in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was product.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:10 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
A grand vision would be a Canadian brand with a Canadian tag, with a traceability component, which is what you do in Quebec. I'm not sure whether you're from Quebec, but....
12:10 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
Quebec has this Aliments du Québec program under which every fisherman has a number, and if they want to participate, their number is on their tag. They tag their lobster with this number, and if you buy the lobster anywhere in the world, you can go online and see a video about that fisherman.
There's another program called “This Fish”, which is a seafood program based on the west coast. It is another tagging program that many lobster guys have participated in. It's a traceability program for marketing.
As you said, there hasn't been a lot of pickup at the distribution level yet, but a Canadian brand, with a Canadian tag and a Canadian traceability program...? That would be beautiful.
12:10 p.m.
NDP
Jean-François Larose NDP Repentigny, QC
If that branding were put in place, we have talked about China, but are there any projections for any new markets that could be looked at, maybe Japan or Korea?
12:15 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
The Far East, South Korea, is another great growing market. Japan has been a very steady market forever, but I'm sure we could do more work there.
We have a whole marketing strategy that is evolving, but basically, the idea is to start domestically. We can sell more lobsters domestically—work with chefs, journalists, those who influence food around the world, key U.S. markets, key European markets. But the Far East is definitely a big bright spot.
12:15 p.m.
NDP
Jean-François Larose NDP Repentigny, QC
In that direction, would there be anything we could do at a federal level to support the council?
12:15 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
Sorry, that was a key question. I don't know yet.
We work every day with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada that has the mandate to support marketing of food products. I have a meeting with them later today on supporting our branding program with some money from a program.
The Canada brand work that they do around the world.... I met our trade commissioner from Ukraine in Europe last month. He had just done a huge promo of lobster, salmon, and a couple of other products, in Ukraine, using Canada brand money, in retail outlets in Kiev. Those are really important programs.
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I was interested in your slide, “How can Federal government help?” I'd like to go through it point by point. I'll leave the levy for a minute.
In point number two, you said to support marketing and promotion. In 2009, something called the community adjustment fund directed that $10 million be allocated to improve marketing and assist in innovation. Mr. Irvine also talked about what AAFC is doing with you in terms of marketing and promotion. So the federal government is fulfilling that ask of yours, is that right?
It's never enough, I understand—
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
12:15 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
There have been programs in the past, for sure, and there is the agri-marketing program under AAFC today that we need to levy to be able to match, to be able to qualify for.
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
I'll get to the levy in a minute.
Point number three is to complete the CETA negotiations. We're doing that.
Point number four is to continue Canada brand program with AAFC. Obviously, to continue means that it's in place.
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
In terms of long-term improvements in industry structure, my colleague talked about that. That's an ongoing effort, I presume, and the federal government is participating in that.
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
In terms of the levy, then, we're basically doing all you're asking for, except the levy. It seems to me that there is a consensus among the harvesters to have a levy. Are you saying that it's up to the federal government, which is legitimate, to actually put a legal structure in place so that levy can be harvested from the harvesters?
12:15 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
If the harvesters are supportive of that, as they were some months ago—and of course it will take some more checking back on that—in general, yes. The question is whether DFO can do that through the regulation of licence fees. We're talking to them about it all the time.
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
Well, I represent an agricultural constituency and we do it all the time in agriculture. Out west, we have something called the western grains research program. That's a check-off. On every tonne of wheat a certain amount of money goes for wheat research. It's a very successful program. I don't think we need to reinvent any wheels here; simply look at what agriculture has done and do what they do.
Personally, I find it really interesting that commercial fishing in general is the only natural resource harvesting enterprise in Canada that does not pay any royalties or levies. There are stumpage fees for trees, royalties for fur, oil and gas revenues, and so on. Commercial fishing stands out as the only one that does not contribute to itself, if I can use that phrase.
I would personally be supportive of whatever the federal government can do to assist you in that particular endeavour.
What is Canada's standing in the world in terms of lobster harvests?
12:15 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
We're the biggest in the world.
12:15 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
Okay. You talk about lobster tariffs. Which countries have tariffs imposed on our lobsters?
12:15 p.m.
Executive Director, Lobster Council of Canada
The EU has tariffs on all products. It ranges from about 6% on live up to 18% on meat.
12:20 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
So CETA would be a great boon for your industry.
12:20 p.m.
Conservative
Robert Sopuck Conservative Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, MB
Okay.
Do harvesters reduce harvest when prices go down? I used to work in the paper industry and we would always hear that such and such a mill had a shutdown because prices were low for a month. Then they would start up again.
Does anything similar happen in the lobster industry?
