Fisheries committee  Probably something in the vicinity of 75% of our product comes from P.E.I. during the spring season. We would likely sell a lot of the products we get from Newfoundland, for example, into different product types, because the lobster there has a bigger-sized claw and is not as well suited for the live trade; it's better for production.

Fisheries committee  You'd have to look at the actual agreement itself.

Fisheries committee  It was made five years ago when the purchase of the Polar assets took place.

Fisheries committee  I'm not quite sure of that.

Fisheries committee  The dwindling is based on the direct buy. We also buy from commission buyers, but the dwindling has been in our direct buy.

Fisheries committee  Yes, we've been somewhere between the 10 million and 13 million pounds in the last three to four years.

Fisheries committee  I think the OCI agreement is in place and is an agreement between the provincial government and Ocean Choice. The answer is that if there were any assistance given to the industry, it would be done on a pro rata basis; I think that's a fair statement.

Fisheries committee  We would have had input on that issue based on the fact that we're members of the Seafood Processors Association of Prince Edward Island. We would also have had input into it based on the fact that we're sitting around the table at the Atlantic industry round table.

Fisheries committee  No.

Fisheries committee  At the Boston Seafood Show, I would suggest as my opinion that traffic was down about 20%. I would suggest that there were very limited commitments made at the Boston Seafood Show. I think there were a lot of tire kickers at the Boston Seafood Show. I believe it is a kind of situation in which people are looking at what's coming up this season and are assuming that prices will be lower, so they're playing a wait-and-see game.

Fisheries committee  Yes.

Fisheries committee  That's correct, yes.

Fisheries committee  There are Martin and Blaine Sullivan, there's Ches Penney, and then there's an Icelandic partner, Visir.

Fisheries committee  You're making the assumption that I can buy the same volume year after year, and that assumption has not been true for Ocean Choice. Our buy has dropped by more than 50% over the last three to five years, which means that my cost on the wharf has risen by 100%. On most of those wharves, we're dealing with the same commission buyer, so for us it's working together to take some cost out of the industry.

Fisheries committee  Again, sir, I would suggest that you're making the assumption that my costs with the commission buyer and the direct buyer are the same, or less. That is information we made a decision on, so I would suggest that the assumption is not correct.