Skip to content

MEDIA RELEASE: FFAW Snow Crab Negotiating Working Group Halts Price Talks Pending Minister’s Management Plan 

Home
Media Releases
Member Updates
MEDIA RELEASE: FFAW Snow Crab Negotiating Working Group Halts Price Talks Pending Minister’s Management Plan 
March 21, 2026

ST. JOHN’S, NL – This morning, the FFAW Snow Crab Negotiating Working Group met and voted unanimously to not begin crab price negotiations until Minister Thompson releases her decision on 2026 crab quotas and opening dates are set. 

This approach will allow crab fisheries in the Gulf and Maritimes to open first, giving the market a chance to stabilize before Newfoundland and Labrador negotiations proceed. It also provides companies additional time to settle outstanding payments owed to harvesters from the 2025 season.

“Holding off on negotiations at this time is the most responsible course of action,” says FFAW President Dwan Street. “Having clarity on the 2026 management plan and seeing how the Gulf snow crab fishery performs will give harvesters a much clearer sense of where prices need to be this season,” Street explains.

The Committee remains committed to achieving a fair and transparent price-setting process for the 2026 crab fishery and will reconvene once quota and opening information is available.

### 

Latest News

FFAW Calls on Minister Thompson to Ensure Fair Northern Cod Management Plan for Inshore Harvesters

Snow Crab Pricing Update

Snow Crab Update April 13 9pm

Member Update – April 13

RESTORING THE RIGHT TO STRIKE: MYTH VS FACT

News Categories

Dr. Erin Carruthers

Dr. Erin Carruthers is the Science Director and Senior Fisheries Scientist with the Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union (FFAW-Unifor), which is the labour union that represents the owner-operator fleet in Newfoundland and Labrador. The FFAW is committed to research and management that supports healthy oceans, fisheries, and coastal communities. Dr. Carruthers received her Ph. D. in Biology from Memorial University in 2011 followed by a postdoctoral fellowship with the Centre for Fisheries Ecosystems Research. Before coming to Newfoundland, Erin worked as a Research Biologist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada at the St. Andrews Biological Station. Her current research program is co-constructed with fish harvesters and includes research on coastal fishing communities, collaborative longline and trap surveys, and best practices for the avoidance, handling and release of unwanted catch.