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Sustainability and Traceability

The Canadian lobster fishery is one of the most carefully managed in the world. We preserve the health and stability of the Homarus Americanus population, balancing how much we take today to protect for the future.

Consumers and trade buyers are more aware than ever of the long-term footprint of fish and seafood products. People are increasingly seeking out fish and seafood independently verified as being from legal and sustainable fisheries.

In seafood, sustainability certification is an industry-led, voluntary process that proves a fishery is well-managed and sustainable regardless of size, type or location. Nearly all (97%) Canadian lobsters come from fisheries independently certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, which ensures Canadian lobsters are sustainable and traceable.

Protecting the catch of tomorrow

Over half the world’s lobster comes from Canada. Our lobster fishery is carefully structured and managed with some of the world’s most stringent guidelines for optimal sustainability and the highest quality lobster, year-round.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) works closely with our industry to plan where and when lobster is fished within Lobster Fishing Areas, or LFAs. Each of the 40 inshore LFAs has its own  fishing season, varying in length from eight weeks to six months. The inshore lobster fishery is managed using ‘input controls’ that includes trap limits and fixed seasons. There is one offshore LFA where eight licenses operate with a Total Allowable Catch (TAC) and determine their own fishing season.  Both inshore and offshore fisheries managers and DFO, constantly assess the health and stability of the Homarus Americanus population to balance how much we take, and what we protect for the future.

  • We issue a limited number of licences and put limits on the number of traps.
  • Our harvesters attach traps to a rope and a buoy to minimize the impact on the sea floor. Each fisherman has a specific number of traps – typically 200 to 375 – that they can harvest within a specific season.
  • We limit and stagger fishing seasons to protect summer moults.
  • We protect egg-bearing females, releasing them back to the sea to preserve their natural reproductive cycle. In fact, when we know we have a good reproducer, some harvesters cut a V-shaped notch in the female’s tail prior to release to ensure she will be released in the future, even when not bearing eggs.
  • We do not take lobsters below the minimum size, to give all the chance to reach full adult maturity and reproduce.
  • Our traps allow undersized lobsters to escape. We also design them with biodegradable escape panels so that if traps are lost, they will degrade quickly, preventing lobsters or other species from becoming entangled.
  • We constantly monitor and enforce fishing regulations and licencing conditions.
  • The offshore lobster fishery has many of the same conservation measures, including an annual limit referred to as total allowable catch.

After hauling in the traps, harvesters keep live lobsters in tidal pounds, dryland pound systems and inland seawater holding tanks that mimic the natural environment. They monitor water purity and optimal temperature, so all lobsters are in peak condition for shipping.

Marine Stewardship Council

The fishery conservation and management system in Eastern Canada is one of the most sophisticated in the world. In addition, the vast majority (97%) of Canada’s lobster fishery is third party eco-certified with the Marine Stewardship Council, which gives three core principles for sustainability:

  • Sustainable fish stocks—we control our lobster harvest to ensure populations remain productive and healthy indefinitely, for future generations and for optimal ocean balance.
  • Minimized environmental impact—we manage and design our lobstering methods to limit our fishery’s impact on other species and habitats within the ecosystem.
  • Effective fisheries management—per MSC-certification, we make sure our Canadian lobster fishery complies with relevant laws and can also adapt to changing environmental conditions and circumstances.

The Canadian lobster sector works with the Marine Stewardship Council to support sustainable fishing and safeguards our seafood for the future, incorporating all inshore Lobster Fishing Area’s (LFAs) in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, and Prince Edward Island. The Canadian offshore fishery has been certified since 2010.

Food Safety: Third Party Certifications

In Canada, all lobster products are processed in provincially licensed, federally registered facilities. These plants must adhere to strict regulations as set out in the Fish Inspection Regulations Act and are enforced by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).

To satisfy the Fish Inspection Regulations, all seafood processing plants must implement a Quality Management Plan (QMP). The QMP is an internationally recognized set of standards that govern how food is handled, processed and labeled. Seafood processing plants are audited through a Compliance Verification program initiated by the CFIA to ensure that all plants satisfy the strict regulations imposed by the industry. The food safety programs implemented through the QMP are among the most stringent in the world. Processed lobster products from Canada are assured to be of the highest quality and safety.

Most Canadian Lobster meets regulations as implemented by the SQF (Safe Quality Food Institute) and BRC (British Retail Consortium), both internationally recognized marks of food safety and excellence.

The SQF Code is an internationally recognized certification system, featuring an emphasis on control of food safety hazards. This protects buyers and ensures transparency from trap to table locally and globally. The BRC Global Standard for Food Safety is a product and process certification standard that sets industry best practices, rating fisheries on their technical performance and efficiency in customer service.

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