Meet the Canada northern prawn fishers

With an annual catch of more than 177.7 million pounds (80.6 million kg.), the Canadian northern prawn trawl fishery is now the largest MSC-certified coldwater shrimp fishery in the world. The primary market for this fishery is the United Kingdom, with other major markets including continental Europe, the United States and other international markets.

As a coldwater shrimp, the northern prawn (Pandalus borealis), is smaller than tropical shrimp but is well known for its sweet, highly flavorful meat. 

The fishery is managed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) with numerous management measures to ensure a well-managed fishery. For example, vessels in the fishery utilize otter trawls fitted with Nordmore separator grates which ensure reduced bycatch as fish pass through the grate and escape from the trawl. The fishery runs from mid-spring to early fall. Raw material is landed fresh to processing facilities around the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, where it is produced in single frozen, cooked and peeled format.

The Association of Seafood Producers (ASP) represents industry producers Barry Group Inc., Fogo Island Co-Op Society Ltd., Notre Dame Seafoods Inc., Nu Sea Products Inc. (BGI), Ocean Choice International L.P., Northern Shrimp Ltd (OCI) and St. Anthony Seafoods Limited Partnership (Clearwater).  These companies all hold MSC Chain of Custody certification, meaning that consumers will soon be able to identify sustainable Canadian northern prawn products by the blue MSC eco-label on their packages—and that these products will be fully traceable through the supply chain to the MSC-certified fishery. 

Derek Butler, executive director of the Association of Seafood Producers, which holds the MSC certification for this fishery, has commented, “I want to compliment our Member-Producers, MSC and other stakeholders for working together to ensure this achievement. I am proud of their work and this certification, particularly given what it represents for this fishery in terms of sustainability, viability and market positioning.”