August 01, 2024, St. John’s, NL – Today, the Association of Seafood Producers (ASP) highlighted issues around snow crab inspection regulations and quality control.
Newfoundland and Labrador’s provincial Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture’s (DFFA) Quality Assurance Program, ensures that seafood products are handled and processed in compliance with provincial legislation.
However, the outdated regulations that are currently in place are doing the seafood industry an injustice.
“The protocols being used by provincial inspectors to determine dead or critically weak crab are outdated and need to be changed,” says Jeff Loder, Executive Director, ASP. “Regulations being enforced by DFFA inspectors are resulting in unnecessary wastage of good product at a time when food insecurity is a global issue.
“The incident at Quinlan’s has brought to light an industry wide issue that must be resolved. Outdated protocols and regulations are resulting in unwarranted actions that are now jeopardizing the brand and the reputation of NL seafood. It’s one thing for the government to regulate quality, it’s another to use its authority to jeopardize NL enterprises,” adds Loder.
Seafood producers have invested millions of dollars in technology, certification, quality assurance systems and transparency in the seafood producing industry.
Producers along with the provincial government have made significant investments specific to snow crab, and these outdated protocols and the recent circulation of inaccurate information are leading to negative impacts for harvesters, seafood producers, plant workers, and others who rely on the seafood industry for their livelihoods. This industry is the cornerstone of our rural economy.
The seafood industry is an integral part of the economy in Newfoundland and Labrador, contributing over $1 billion annually. Out of the 26 ASP members, 14 are involved with snow crab – a major contributor to the industry.
In a media availability today, ASP, set the record straight on misinformation communicated and reported over the past week, in an attempt to restore global confidence in the reputation of NL seafood products, that has taken years to build.
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