Thank you.
Thank you to the committee members for the opportunity to appear today.
I'm here today as president of the Canadian Independent Fish Harvesters' Federation. The federation represents more than 14,000 licensed small business owners, with 30,000-plus crew members, working in our country. They produce more than $3 billion in landed value and generate over $5 billion in exports. Our membership includes two organizations representing owner-operator fleets in British Columbia.
I also serve as general manager of the Grand Manan Fishermen's Association, representing 90 inshore fishing enterprises, with a membership of more than 220 harvesters in my home community of Grand Manan, New Brunswick.
My comments today reflect the federation's policies and also my almost 40 years of experience living in a vibrant east coast community, where the fishery has provided livelihoods to many generations of fishing families.
Fishing has always been hard work in a challenging environment.