Members of the seafood industry in Canada’s East Coast can now breathe a sigh of relief as the federal government has eliminated U.S. fish and seafood products from the list of items subjected to counter-tariffs.
The decision to remove these products was announced by the government late on Wednesday following feedback received.
This action was taken in response to the U.S. imposing new 50 per cent tariffs on a range of goods after trade discussions collapsed, prompting Canada to counter with tariffs on $27.6 billion worth of U.S. goods.
Initially, many of the products targeted were seafood items, taxed at a 25 per cent rate.
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne states that removing U.S. fish and seafood from counter-tariffs is in the best interests of Canada. Following feedback from Canadians, the federal government updated the tariff list set to take effect on Sept. 8.
Concerns arose among industry leaders regarding the potential negative impact of these measures on the seafood sector, which had not previously been involved in the trade dispute until the recent announcement.
Gilles Thériault, former president of the New Brunswick Crab Processors Association, expressed relief on behalf of the entire Atlantic fisheries industry over the removal of the tariff.
Nat Richard, executive director at the Lobster Processors Association, emphasized the significant cross-border integration of the industry, with American-caught lobster being processed in Canadian plants during the off-season before being exported back to the U.S.
According to Richard, a 25 per cent tariff would have rendered processing in Canada financially unfeasible, potentially leading to premature closures of numerous processing plants that employ hundreds of workers.
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