Scotia Harvest adds clams to product list, expands scallop fleet | CBC News
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As Nova Scotia’s seafood industry grapples with tariffs and uncertain quota allocations, some businesses are diversifying to better deal with the uncertainty.
For Alain d’Entremont, president of Scotia Harvest Inc., that was part of the thinking behind the purchase of a clam and scallop business.
His Digby County company already harvests and processes haddock, redfish and scallops. But he said a new product like clams will secure the business when quotas for other species fluctuate.
“By diversifying, we have a good ability to maintain our business and to change that whenever those types of things happen,” said d’Entremont.
Ocean temperatures, overfishing or just stock movements affect fishing quotas.
The purchase gives the company based in Seabrook ownership of Innovative Fishery Products’ clam facility in St. Bernard and a single scallop vessel, bringing its fleet for that fishery to six.
“This puts us around 10 per cent of the Bay of Fundy scallop quota,” said d’Entremont.
Innovative Fishery Products declined an interview request.
Although d’Entremont did not disclose the purchase amount, he confirmed the sale was finalized on March 20 after around four years of talks.
“Over time, it just seemed like a really good fit for Scotia [Harvest] to expand,” he said.
Kris Vascotto, executive director of the Nova Scotia Seafood Alliance, said others in the sector are also considering diversifying.
Not only does that help a company deal with the uncertainty of fish stocks, but he said it also helps deal with the unpredictability of international markets, especially after a series of tariffs scared the industry in the last year.
“You might also be really relying heavily on countries within the European Union or other Southeast Asian countries where we are able to weather some of those tariff risks and some of those trade challenges,” said Vascotto.
“So it’s really all about building that resiliency by having other options, both to handle raw materials as well as other customers who will be looking for the product.”
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