Certainly some of the spawn-on-kelp licence holders believe the increase in the Heiltsuk allocation affected the market price.
From our perspective, in looking at that question, we noted a few things. We noted the following. The price peaked in the mid-1990s, before the Heiltsuk decision in 1996 and before the quota started to be phased in, in 1997, 1998, and 1999. In fact, the price was already at a historical high and was declining before the decision was actually put into place.
We also noted that the allocation for the Heiltsuk was held constant from 2001 to 2005, while the total landings in British Columbia were basically constant or declining. The price still declined through those years.
The other thing we noted was that for the roe herring fishery, which has the same Japanese market, their price also declined during the same time period.
In analyzing this situation, it's our view that the dominant factors are the Japanese demographics, the change in consumption patterns, global competition, and the value of the Canadian dollar.
I recognize that some spawn-on-kelp licence holders don't accept that, but the empirical evidence we have suggests that the dominant factors are the ones I have mentioned.