Canada’s East Coast seafood industry members are relieved as the federal government has removed U.S. fish and seafood products from the list of counter-tariffed items. The government made this announcement late on Wednesday, citing adjustments based on feedback. This change followed the federal government’s imposition of counter-tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of U.S. goods, in response to the new 50 per cent tariffs imposed by the U.S. over the weekend when trade negotiations collapsed. Initially, many seafood products were included in the list, subject to a 25 per cent tax rate.
Industry leaders were concerned about the potential devastating impact of these countermeasures on the seafood business, which had not been part of the trade dispute until the recent announcement. Gilles Thériault, former president of the New Brunswick Crab Processors Association, expressed relief that the tariff on seafood had been removed. The industry’s close integration across the border was highlighted by Nat Richard, the executive director of the Lobster Processors Association, which represents 25 processors from the Maritimes.
Richard emphasized the economic challenges posed by the 25 per cent tariffs, stating that processing seafood in Canada would have become financially unviable. The fear was that many processing plants, which typically employ hundreds of workers, might have to shut down prematurely. Kris Vascotto, executive director of the Nova Scotia Seafood Alliance, pointed out that nearly all seafood items imported by Canada were on the retaliatory tariff list, indicating a widespread impact across the industry.
Joanne Losier, executive director of New Brunswick Crab Processors, expressed concerns about potential repercussions on the Canadian seafood industry and the risk of further tit-for-tat tariffs from the U.S. Over 90 per cent of Canada’s snow crab is exported to the U.S., and Losier hopes to avoid tariffs being imposed on this product by the American side.
Although some measures were rolled back, the federal government affirmed its commitment to maintaining a proportional response to U.S. products. Certain new items, including copper wire and charcoal, were added to the list to uphold this response. These products will be subjected to a 50 per cent tariff starting on September 8. Minister of Finance François-Philippe Champagne highlighted that the government’s decision to remove seafood tariffs was influenced by listening to Canadians and acting in Canada’s best interests.