Tag Archives: Groundfish Industry Development Council

The Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council are Disappointed with the Northern Cod Maximum Allowable harvest announced today by DFO

“The NLGIDC were hoping for an increase in the harvest level for 2023 based on the extremely successful cod fishery in the 2J3KL area in 2022”, said James Baird, the chair of the NLGIDC. “Weekly harvest rates for the first 4 weeks of this fishery in 2022 all surpassed the highest weekly landings observed in this fishery since 2016”, continued Baird. “Additionally, the lack of science assessments for Northern cod in 2022 and 2023 continue to hinder the development of this iconic fishery and is a cause of considerable concern for the Newfoundland and Labrador fishing industry”, said Paul Grant, the Executive Vice-President of Beothic Fish Processors Ltd. >click to read< 18:48

N.L. group wants increase in northern cod catch from Minister Murray

We could use a bit more cod. That’s the message the Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council (NLGIDC) is sending to Joyce Murray, Canada’s minister of Fisheries and Oceans. Jim Baird is chair of the council, whose members include the Fish Food and Allied Workers union and inshore processors, including Barry Group, Labrador Fishermen’s Union Shrimp Co., Beothic Fish Processors and Fogo Island Co-operative Society. He told SaltWire members of the council want the minister to allow a harvest of 17,000 tonnes, or more, of northern cod from the stewardship fishery in zones 2J3KL, along the northeast coast of the province. >click to read <  19:06

NLGIDC concerned with the recent announcement regarding Northern Gulf Cod

Similar to many NL fishing industry associations and the Province of NL, The Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council (NLGIDC) is also concerned with federal Fisheries Minister Joyce Murry’s decision to place a one-year moratorium in the Northern Gulf Cod stock. “This was a small fishery, however the total closure will have negative impacts on harvesters and processors as well as coastal communities on the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Lower North Shore of Quebec,” says Jim Baird, the Chair Person of the NLGIDC. >click to continue< 15:29

NLGIDC Applauds the appointment of new Ministers to the Federal Cabinet

The Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council congratulates the Honourable Joyce Murray who was recently appointed as Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard. “The NLGIDC are looking forward to meeting with Minister Murray in the near future to discuss many issues of concern to the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishing Industry”, said James Baird, the chair of the NLGIDC. >click to read< 14:43

NL Groundfish Industry Development Council can’t support federal cod stock rebuilding program

The Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council says it can’t support the federal government’s recently announced cod stock rebuilding plan, saying it’s overly restrictive and will not enable the industry to rebuild as the cod stock rebuilds. Jim Baird, chair of the NL-GIDC, wants to see further surveys done based around the impact of seals and capelin stocks, adding the entire plan appears to be based around limiting the catch for harvesters and not other sources which could be impeding the development of cod stocks. >click to read< 22:32

2J3KL Cod Scientific Update was recently released. Important information was not included

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans released an update of the scientific assessment for 2J3KL Cod on Friday, April 17, 2020. While the Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council appreciates the effort by DFO-Science in completing this update in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, it appears that some important information was not included in the scientific deliberations. There is an internationally-accepted scientific model that has been used for this stock since 2016. This model provides information on overall stock biomass, fishing mortality, natural mortality and recruitment. All the data required to complete this analysis was available to scientists, but they chose not to run the model for this update. Contact: Jim Baird >click to read< 12:06

Harvey Jarvis – Ignore cod sentinel data at our peril

Twenty-three years ago, I helped lead a team that designed and implemented the cod sentinel inshore survey on Northern Cod (Southern Avalon, North East Coast and Labrador). The status of Northern Cod has been much in the news lately and the decision, by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), to cut the commercial quota has been met with some stiff opposition from the FFAW-Unifor. This prompted me to do a little investigating to see what cod sentinel is telling us about Northern Cod. Based on a review of cod sentinel information, by opposing the 2018 quota reduction by DFO, I can only conclude that the FFAW-Unifor and the Groundfish Industry Development Council (GIDC) appear to be ignoring the last five years of sentinel data. According to information that I have been able to piece together, cod sentinel results are as follows: >click to read<09:03

FISH-NL Calls For Resignation of Dominic LeBlanc, Federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans

The Federation of Independent Sea Harvesters of Newfoundland and Labrador (FISH-NL) is calling for Dominic LeBlanc’s resignation in light of his failure to address the current fisheries crisis. “Twenty six years after the northern cod moratorium, and the federal minister of Fisheries and Oceans still isn’t prepared to lead and do what needs to be done,” said Ryan Cleary, President of FISH-NL. “It’s time for LeBlanc to get out of the way, or for the Prime Minster to replace him.” ,,, LeBlanc has made a number of decisions as minister that have hurt this province, >click to read<11:56

Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council launches with recognition of challenges ahead

cod-fishFive years down the road, members of the new Newfoundland and Labrador Groundfish Industry Development Council plan to handle more groundfish catch, processing it in-province, providing the best possible product to the international marketplace as shellfish work drops off. It’s their identified road to sustainability. It means lots of new training, fishermen gearing up for groundfish, more plant workers ready to punch hours handling that groundfish year-round, fish plants with the right machinery and environments to do the required processing and attract younger workers. Read the article here 10:31