N.L. succeeding in finding markets outside U.S. at seafood expo in Boston, minister says

Alex Kennedy · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 18, 2025 9:15 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 minutes ago

Newfoundland and Labrador Fisheries Minister Gerry Byrne says efforts to diversify to markets beyond the United States person been palmy astatine Seafood Expo North America successful Boston — but isn't acceptable to stock precisely wherever provincial products could beryllium going.

"Diversification for Newfoundland companies has been successful," Byrne told CBC News connected Monday.

"I'll permission that for the companies to unfold arsenic they motion those last contracts, but we person had occurrence successful processing caller markets successful antithetic continents."

Byrne is portion of a Newfoundland and Labrador delegation attending the ongoing seafood expo, which includes unions, works representatives and more.

Representatives from 50 countries marque up the largest seafood gathering connected the continent — which is giving Canadian operations the accidental to research caller markets arsenic the menace of tariffs from the United States and China loom.

Byrne said it's besides fixed the accidental for planetary markets to spot what Newfoundland and Labrador has to offer.

"New markets are readily disposable to us. Everybody who drops by the Newfoundland and Labrador booth present astatine the Boston seafood amusement is conscionable amazed astatine the versatility, the assortment of products we have," Byrne said.

"This is simply a big, large industry. We bash person a definite spot here."

Byrne said immoderate contracts arranged during the amusement could travel into effect successful the 2nd oregon 3rd 4th of 2025.

Juan Roberts, president of Badger Bay Mussel Farms successful Triton, N.L., said tariffs person brought his concern to the thought of enlargement successful Canada and question beyond the U.S. Fifty-five per cent of his merchandise presently goes southbound of the border, helium said.

He's been capable to person bully conversations astatine the show.

"There's different places successful the satellite that bargain what we grow. So we'll get determination eventually, it conscionable mightiness instrumentality a spot of time," Roberts said Monday.

"There's going to beryllium much sold successful Canada, I think, but it mightiness not marque up the afloat 55 per cent that we merchantability successful the U.S."

Byrne was besides asked astir the assignment of Newfoundland and Labrador MP Joanne Thompson arsenic the caller national fisheries curate nether Prime Minister Mark Carney. He says he's looking forward to their collaboration.

"I cannot assistance but deliberation that that's a positive," Byrne said. "But the virtues, the attributes that I would ever inquire for successful immoderate national fisheries curate is to beryllium just … respond to grounds and facts, and just play. Newfoundland and Labrador, its full past is babelike connected the fishery."

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