Every major player in the seal industry gathered in one large room at the Delta Hotel yesterday to brainstorm their way to new products and markets.
Ministers, senators, scientists, business, FFAW, Indigenous leaders and MPs took part in the session.
Media, however, were not allowed to cover it, and were told to leave the room following opening remarks by Fisheries and Oceans Minister Joyce Murray.
In a statement to VOCM News, a DFO spokesperson said it was closed to the media “to give participants a chance to share their views and have open discussion together.”
The industry continues to be dogged by claims from animal rights groups, influencing markets in China, the European Union and elsewhere.
Murray conceded there’s pushback on the homefront as well. She says while some Canadians may not support the industry, it’s up to stakeholders to protect the market access they’ve gained and strive to expand on a larger scale.
Canadian fish and seafood sales totaled almost $9 billion in 2021, with almost $7 billion of that coming from the Atlantic provinces.
While media were barred from yesterday’s seal summit discussions, Murray will take reporters’ questions when the two-day event wraps up this afternoon.
Meanwhile, up at the Emera Innovation Exchange on Signal Hill, a number of businesses were showing off their seal products.
Craft Council executive director Rowena House believes there’s a sea change occurring, with people coming around to the sobering reality of climate change and the importance of sustainability.
She says the message is slowly but surely getting through that sealing is controlled and monitored to ensure it’s as humane as any other animal harvesting, not to mention sustainable as an industry and food supply.
Carla Hunt is co-owner of Timeless North, a Labrador venture that creates seal-related products.
She respects the views of others, whether they make sense to her or not.
That said, she believes others should understand that sealing is an industry like other animal-based industries, insisting there’s no difference from a seal to a fish to a chicken to a cow. But, she notes, everyone is entitled to their opinion and they don’t have to buy anything that goes against it.”
