Record breaking attendance at Canadian trade show

“Attendees can meet local operators who have products, services and supplies that can help businesses based out of Norway, UK and other global companies,” said Marc Lane, executive director for the NL Aquaculture Industry Association.

“I actually did a poll to determine where people were coming from. We even had a response from Egypt. People spanning right across the country and certainly right across the globe are interested, so that means they are satisfied with our trade shows. This year has broken a record for us.”

Lane adds that 580 are attending the conference this week and with every hotel room in St John’s sold out the local economy is getting a boost. There are 62 trade show exhibitors and 30 countries are being represented.

Cleaner fish

The Second Annual Global Cleaner Fish forum will also take place during the three-day event. There are 28 speakers in the forum and 160 attendees have already registered.

The main purpose of the workshop is to survey the state of cleaner fish production globally and to fill knowledge gaps with respect to the scale-up of production and use of cleaner fish (lumpfish and cunner) in Atlantic Canada. The workshop will feature international expert speakers from Canada, United Kingdom, Faroe Islands, Belgium, Norway, Ireland and Iceland. 

Presentations and group discussions will include:

• Broodstock husbandry, hatchery and juvenile production
• Best practices in cleaner fish transport and cage site use
• Wild collection and population dynamics
• Cleaner fish fish health and nutrition
• Cleaner fish regulatory considerations

Sheldon George from Cooke Aquaculture will be part of the Cleaner Fish Program while Aaron Craig from Mowi Canada East will present the developments in Cleaner Fish Use and Technology on Wednesday.

Canada Supercluster

Other presentations include:

• Kendra MacDonald, the chief executive officer for Canada’s Ocean Supercluster, will be speaking about one of the country’s most significant and sustainable value creating economic segments, the Canada Supercluster.
• Canadian television chef and Ocean Wise spokesperson Ned Bell will be discussing public engagement.
• Thomas Grieg of Grieg NL will discuss Grieg’s future plans in Newfoundland.
• Ed Porter from Fisheries and Oceans Canada will present a session about aquaculture activities and regulations
• Dr. Michael Beattie from Gas Infusion Systems Inc. will present The Effects of Gas Infusion Systems Technology on Growth and Overall Health of Atlantic Salmon.

Companies such as Poseidon Ocean Systems from Campbell River and US-based feed producer Cargill will also make presentations.

Global partners

During the event service suppliers will have the opportunity to make pitches to Mowi, Grieg and Cooke Aquaculture. All of the three major companies have salmon farms located in North America’s east coast and west coast. A networking session on Wednesday will give 300 attendees the opportunity to connect with global partners.

“We’ve got the innovation Norway luncheon being held in partnership with the Royal Norwegian Embassy, they will be focusing on innovation, global alliances and sustainable partnerships,” said Lane.

“In addition to that we have sessions on public trust and social licensing. This is important so we can communicate success stories of salmon farming, in particular other aspects of aquaculture, to the world, to the local stakeholders, both here at home and across Canada. We’ve got sessions on shellfish and the latest trends and certification. We have a wide array of speakers and topics and we have something for everybody.”

Cold Harvest 2019 is running for three days and ends on Thursday. For more information click here.