Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance

08/24/2026

Powerful message. In communities like Klemtu, salmon farming drives over 50% of the local economy and advances Indigenous self-reliance. Community-led aquaculture belongs at the heart of Canada’s food security strategy. 🇨🇦🐟 keepfoodaffordable.ca

08/20/2026

Coexistence isn't a talking point. It's daily practice for coastal BC First Nations.

In a new Vancouver Sun op-ed, Isaiah Robinson (Deputy Chief Councillor of Kitasoo Xai'xais Nation and spokesperson for the First Nations for Finfish Stewardship Coalition) pushes back on the idea that you have to choose between wild salmon protection and salmon farming.

Some numbers worth sitting with:
🐟 100% of B.C. salmon farms operate in partnership with rights-holder Nations
🐟 The sector generates $1.12 billion in annual economic activity and supports over 4,000 jobs with more than 1,000 of them First Nations people
🐟 For Kitasoo Xai'xais Nation in Klemtu, salmon farming makes up 51% of the local economy

Robinson's message is clear: coastal Nations in BC have been practicing stewardship and choosing aquaculture in their own territories for decades and they want a seat at the table, not a ban dictated from elsewhere. He's calling for reversing the planned 2029 net-pen phase-out and for a five-point plan that puts more ownership, licensing authority, and decision-making in First Nations' hands.

It's a perspective that doesn't get enough airtime in this debate. Read the full op-ed 👇
🔗

Rural, coastal First Nations want a reversal of the 2029 net pen ban and to increase Indigenous leadership ownership and stewardship in salmon aquaculture

08/10/2026

Important context from our colleagues at the BC Salmon Farmers Association. Correlation isn't causation. Headlines linking wild salmon disease to salmon farming deserve a closer look at the actual study.

A new Pacific Salmon Foundation and UBC study reports tenacibaculosis in wild-caught Chinook salmon. It does not demonstrate a link to salmon farming.

The fish were caught in an area where salmon farms are not present, and became sick only after being caught with recreational gear, handled, transported and held in tanks.

"This study describes fish that became sick after they were caught, handled and held in tanks; the authors say so themselves," said Brian Kingzett, Executive Director, BCSFA. "That is not evidence that salmon farms are harming wild salmon, and it should not be reported as though it were."

Tenacibaculum is a common marine bacterium. Detecting it does not establish its source, nor does it establish disease. DFO's 2020 peer-reviewed assessment found no more than a minimal risk to Fraser River sockeye, and the bacterium has not been demonstrated to cause disease in wild Pacific salmon.

Read our full statement here:
https://loom.ly/NvurvMI

08/06/2026

Great to see New Brunswick's leadership taking a close look at what our aquaculture sector delivers for jobs, food security and coastal communities.

06/19/2026

Aquaculture is agriculture.

Canada’s farmed seafood sector helps feed families, support good jobs in rural and coastal communities, and strengthen our country’s food security and low‑carbon future.

We’re calling for farmed seafood to be fully recognized and supported as part of agriculture in Canada’s next agricultural policy framework.

🎥 Watch our new 60‑second video to see why this matters, and learn more:
👉 aquaculture.ca/aquacultureisagriculture

06/01/2026

The Coalition of First Nations For Finfish Stewardship (FNFFS) has launched a petition asking Ottawa to reverse the 2029 BC salmon farming ban.

Why it matters:
→ 500+ year-round jobs in coastal communities with no replacement industries
→ $50M annually flowing directly to First Nations communities
→ 100% of BC farms already operate with Nation permission
→ Domestic production keeps salmon on Canadian tables at Canadian prices

The petition routes to key MPs automatically. Your letter lands within 24 hours.

Sign it. Share it. The window to reverse this is now.

The investment is ready. The innovation is ready. The farmers are ready. Reversing the 2029 ban delivers on what Canada has already committed to and gets food back on the table for the communities that depend on it.

Sign the petition. keepfoodaffordable.ca

05/07/2026

From two men and a red truck in 1994 to supplying 80% of Canada's fresh trout today.

Cole Munro Foods is exactly the kind of Canadian aquaculture story we want more Canadians to know.

Their team says it best: "If you don't have clean water, you don't have good fish — just like a crop farmer cares about their soil."

Aquaculture is agriculture. Cole Munro is proof.

📖 Read their story: https://st-thomas.org/stthomasproud-tales/colemunro

From a small Port Stanley operation in 1994 to supplying 80% of Canada's fresh trout, Cole Munro Foods is one of St. Thomas's best-kept business secrets — and a story worth knowing

03/31/2026

Seafood farming is part of everyday life in many Canadian communities.

It supports local jobs, contributes to our economy and helps put food on the table.

Yesterday, Canada’s seafood farmers called on governments to better support the sector by including aquaculture in the Next Policy Framework for agriculture.

Right now, aquaculture contributes $2.3 billion to Canada’s economy and supports over 18,000 jobs but it’s not fully included in programs that support other types of farming.

With the right approach, there’s a real opportunity to grow.
👉 Learn more: https://aquaculture.ca/news-releases/aquaculture-in-next-policy-framework

03/30/2026

The Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance, together with our regional partners, has sent a letter to federal, provincial, and territorial ministers of Agriculture and Fisheries asking that aquaculture finally be recognized as a full part of Canada's agricultural sector.

For too long, the people who grow, harvest, and depend on this industry have been left out of the same programs and supports that other farmers across Canada can access. We think that's wrong — and we're saying so.

Here's what we're asking for:

1️⃣ Access to the same federal funding programs available to other food producers in Canada.

2️⃣ The ability for provinces to offer direct support to their own aquaculture farmers and workers.

3️⃣ A dedicated program to help shellfish and freshwater farmers manage the risks that come with unpredictable weather and pests.

This is about fairness for the communities and families who depend on this industry from coast to coast. We'll keep you posted on how ministers respond.

📄 Want to read the full letter? It's attached below.

Do you work in aquaculture? Share this with your network