The federal government has slashed the shrimp quota in the Gulf of St. Lawrence with harvesters from this province being the hardest hit according to the FFAW.
A cut of nearly 20 per cent in Shrimp Fishing Area 8 is contrary to the recently-established Precautionary Approach framework says, President Keith Sullivan. Despite the stock being categorized as “healthy,” DFO reduced the quota in all zones in the Gulf with one exception.
He says harvesters and plant workers have already been devastated by past cuts of more than 50 per cent in recent years and this decision rubs salt in the wound.
Unlike many other fisheries, most inshore harvesters who fish Gulf shrimp only have access to shrimp and cannot supplement with another fishery. Add in the doubling of fuel costs, and it makes for quite the hit.
Sullivan says the explosion of the redfish stock in the Gulf means that they will simply have more shrimp to consume. He says the fishing industry and entire communities are concerned with the growth of the redfish stock.