Salmon farmer's global spread may help it trump Trump's tariffs
Mowi 'will be prepared to redistribute volumes with respect to prevailing trade policies'
Global salmon farmer Mowi is ready to re-arrange its export routines if United States president Donald Trump imposes a 25% tariff on salmon imported from Canada, it said today.
Mowi farms salmon in seven countries - Norway, Scotland, Chile, Ireland, Iceland, the Faroes, and Canada, where it farms on both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. The US is the primary export destination for salmon farmers in Canada and Chile.
“The recently announced imposition of 25% tariffs on goods imported from Canada to the USA has been postponed,” Norway-headquartered Mowi wrote in its report for the fourth quarter of 2024 published today.
“The situation is fluid, and it is difficult to see how this will play out. Mowi will therefore continuously monitor any developments and will be prepared to redistribute our volumes from our seven origins with respect to prevailing trade policies at any given time to best serve our customers.”
A tough time in BC
Trump’s tariff threat is the latest in a series of blows for salmon farmers in the western Canada province of British Columbia. The Liberal-led federal government has closed salmon farms in the Discovery Islands in BC to protect wild salmon, despite the government’s own scientists concluding that farms pose no more than a minimal threat to wild fish.
And last year the government announced that open net pen salmon farming would be banned in BC from the end of June 2029 as part of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s plan to “transition” the sector to closed containment on land or in sea.
Furthermore, Mowi Canada West’s costs have been driven up by knock-on effects from an algal bloom in the Port Hardy and Klemtu regions of BC in July and August.
Strategic review
Mowi initiated an ongoing strategic review of its Canada West operation last year and said it its Q4 report that it will explore all available options before taking the appropriate action.
It said Mowi Canada West had recognised impairment losses of €54.2 million (CAD 80.4m) in financial earnings before interest and tax in Q4 related to the change of framework conditions imposed by Ottawa in BC.
Mowi Canada (east and west combined) made an operating profit of €2.4m in Q4 and €3.4m for 2024, although financial losses were -€24.6m and -€71.3m respectively.
Harvest volume in Q4 was 5,239 gutted weight tonnes (Q4 2023: 4,158 gwt).
“In Canada West, the harvest volume was 4,105 tonnes, relatively stable from 3,971 tonnes in Q4 2023. In Canada East, the harvest volume was kept low at 1,135 tonnes (187 tonnes) in order to build biomass and benefit from expected market improvements in 2025,” wrote Mowi.
Harvested volumes in Q1 2025 are mainly expected to come from Canada East.
