Notice to Fish Harvesters - MESSAGE FROM MINISTER LEBOUTHILIER ON UNREPORTED SALES AND LANDINGS IN THE ATLANTIC AND QUEBEC FISHERIES - nf.24.104

FISHERIES AND OCEANS CANADA

NOTICE TO FISH HARVESTERS

nf.24.104B

May. 7, 2024

MESSAGE FROM MINISTER LEBOUTHILIER ON UNREPORTED SALES AND LANDINGS IN THE ATLANTIC AND QUEBEC FISHERIES

St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador – May 7, 2024

As Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, I am committed to safeguarding Canada’s aquatic resources and maximizing the benefits they provide to Canadians.

Accurate information on the resources that are being harvested from the sea is critical to making sound resource management decisions that will improve long-term benefits for coastal communities. Failing to report or misreporting the quantity of fish and seafood being removed from our waters can be a contributor to declining stocks and undermines economic stability and the livelihoods of law-abiding fish harvesters.

We know that fisheries is a vital sector of our economy. By way of illustration, according to current data, the 2021 inshore lobster fishery landed value exceeding 2 billion dollars. While the use of cash in the sale is not illegal, landings or revenues that are not reported/declared, and which often involve cash transactions, are illegal. Our government is committed to fight the underground economy wherever it exists. From my many visits to the field over the past few months, I know that this issue is at the heart of the priorities of many stakeholders, both in the catching and processing sector.

This is why my department is working closely with federal and provincial counterparts, including the Canada Revenue Agency and Public Safety Canada, to protect Canada’s fisheries interests through the detection and deterrence of unreported cash sales and landings with a current focus on the Atlantic and Quebec fisheries. Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is also modernizing tools and methods to facilitate the provision of catch data by harvesters and to monitor fisheries, notably through the progressive implementation of electronic logbooks (ELOGS).

DFO uses its authorities under the Fisheries Act and the regulations to require accurate reporting from harvesters and those purchasing their landings for commercial purposes. In order to verify compliance with these requirements, DFO’s enforcement program uses a wide range of tools as part of a risk-based, intelligence-led compliance program.

The public can also assist the Department’s work to disrupt and prevent illegal activity by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, Poaching Alert 1-800-463-9057 (Quebec), or DFO Offices toll-free (Contact Fisheries and Oceans Canada: Report a fisheries violation: https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/contact/report-signaler-eng.htm).

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