Mr. Butler.
Evidence of meeting #34 for International Trade in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was lot.
Evidence of meeting #34 for International Trade in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was lot.
9:45 a.m.
Executive Director, Association of Seafood Producers
This is simply a historical note that might be of interest to the committee. The MSC label, the world's most pre-eminent label for eco-certification, was actually developed on the back of the groundfish moratorium. It was when Unilever and the WWF and other organizations asked: is there a mechanism by which we can bring market forces to bear, the rights of consumers to demand sustainable fish, that will force fisheries to change behaviours in terms of bottom impacts, ecosystem impacts, management regimes?
It actually was developed on the back of the groundfish collapse in Atlantic Canada.
9:45 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Mark Eyking
That's very interesting. Thank you very much.
We'll go to the MPs now, and start off with the Conservatives for five minutes.
Mr. Van Kesteren, you have the floor.
9:45 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
Thanks, Chair.
I don't know, that's exactly what I was going to ask, so maybe I'll pass.
9:45 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
No, let's keep going on that, because this really is important.
In essence, what you're telling this committee is that this certification is one major important step to not ever have happen again what happened, say, to our cod industry. Is it correct when I say that?
9:45 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
You mentioned that it started in Europe and now it's spread to Canada. Is there momentum for that, because I'm sure—well, I would hope—that we continue in that vein? But there are areas of the world where there is overfishing. Does this put pressure on them to...?
It does. Can you maybe elaborate on that? Would a trade agreement force them to adopt those policies as well?
9:45 a.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Choice International L.P.
Yes, I think what we've seen is the customers now demand you have third-party accreditation. It's almost like a market access issue. As we expand to new areas with trade agreements and opportunities for our products, people require certain basic parameters under which you operate. One of them increasingly is having a third-party accreditation of their fishery, like the Marine Stewardship Council.
We're seeing in Japan, for example, the usage is much lower than in North America or Europe, but the largest retailer, the Aeon Group that we deal with, is now setting targets that they have to have a certain percentage of their products MSC-certified. If we can't supply that product, then we can't sell to them. Japan, of course, is an important part of the TPP, and getting better access and more competitive access to that market will certainly create more opportunities for us.
9:45 a.m.
Conservative
9:50 a.m.
Executive Director, Association of Seafood Producers
With respect to the MSC program and similar eco-certifications, it is expanding in respect of developing-world fisheries, for example, data-poor fisheries. The standard is being developed such that it can apply to fisheries throughout Africa and other jurisdictions, where we might not have the rich history of fisheries management that we have in Canada. So it is expanding, yes.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
I'm getting a little off topic, but this really is near and dear to my heart, and I think it's the same for most Canadians. What are the areas of greatest concern on the planet right now? Which areas are being overfished, and why would that be?
9:50 a.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Choice International L.P.
I think the areas that don't have as much attention would be parts of Africa and southeast Asia.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
Who's doing it? It can't be the Africans. Are the Chinese and Japanese overfishing in that area?
9:50 a.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Choice International L.P.
Yes, you have other countries that are coming into these areas, but increasingly it's a global marketplace. With social media, you can't run and hide. You can't engage in practices like people could at one time. There are things now like a list of restricted vessels. If you engage in illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing, there's a blacklist. People won't buy from you, from those vessels.
There's a lot of customer-based enforcement, really, in terms of market access. If you don't comply, you can't sell your products. It's very effective.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
Mr. Butler, how many of your organizations would you call large corporations as opposed to smaller businesses, such as local fishermen and family-owned organizations?
9:50 a.m.
Executive Director, Association of Seafood Producers
Most of the membership is family-owned. There's one publicly traded company that's a member of ASP through some affiliates within the province, but essentially they're all family-owned businesses. Two are harvester-owned businesses along the co-operative models, but not fully co-ops. All have invested uniquely and primarily in rural Newfoundland and Labrador. There are no fish plants on the waterfront here.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
9:50 a.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Choice International L.P.
Well, we're a family-owned business based in Newfoundland, but we do business all over the world. I'm not sure how you'd define that, but we're a private company.
9:50 a.m.
Executive Director, Association of Seafood Producers
Martin's a man of the world.
9:50 a.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Choice International L.P.
We always say that when you live on a rock in the Atlantic and you're trying to sell fish, you have to travel all over the world to do it. It's just the nature of our business. Seafood is the most traded commodity in the world.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON
We've heard that these trade agreements really are instruments for multinational companies. Would either one of you be considered, or would you consider yourselves, shills for multinational corporations?
9:50 a.m.
Chief Executive Officer, Ocean Choice International L.P.
Not really, no. I wouldn't consider our company a multinational corporation. We're a Canadian company that's selling fish all over the world.
9:50 a.m.
Executive Director, Association of Seafood Producers
I would concur. We're the mechanism by which we transfer payments from consumers into the pockets of rural Newfoundlanders and Labradorians through the sale of fish.