A new aquaculture industry report calls for policy changes to unlock investment, create jobs and produce more Canadian food.
The Atlantic Canadian salmon farming industry could increase the region’s gross domestic product (GDP) by one per cent by 2035 while creating jobs, attracting investment and producing more food here at home, according to a new report released by the Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association (ACFFA).
Farming our Future: A Roadmap for Responsible Growth in Atlantic Canada’s Finfish Sector said the region has the coastline, expertise, infrastructure and people needed to responsibly grow the sector — but regulatory delays, uncertainty and barriers to investment are holding it back.
“Atlantic Canada helped pioneer modern salmon farming, and we remain home to some of the best expertise and innovation in the world,” said ACFFA Executive Director Tom Taylor. “But while our competitors are growing, Canada is producing less farmed salmon than it did a decade ago. We have an enormous opportunity to change that.”
ACFFA commissioned Enterprise Canada to examine the federal and provincial policy changes needed to enable responsible growth of Atlantic Canada’s finfish farming sector.
The opportunity comes as Canadians are increasingly looking to buy food produced in Canada. Canada imported more than $765 million worth of Atlantic salmon in 2025 — double the import value of 2016. At the same time, the value of Canadian salmon exports has declined eight per cent since 2016.
“Canadians are already eating Atlantic salmon. The question is whether more of that salmon will be grown here or imported from somewhere else,” Taylor said. “Atlantic Canada can produce more of the healthy, climate-friendly food Canadians want while creating good jobs and economic opportunities in coastal communities.”
The sector already supports more than 9,400 jobs, generates approximately $3.2 billion in economic output and produces more than 356 million meals annually. As many as 1,400 Atlantic Canadian businesses provide goods and services to the industry, generating more than $600 million in supplier sales and activity.
Yet Canada is losing ground internationally.
Norway’s farmed salmon industry is now 16 times larger than Canada’s. In 2025, Norway exported more than 1.4 million metric tonnes of salmon and Chile exported 825,000 tonnes, compared with just over 65,000 tonnes from Canada.
The report argues that the difference is not Atlantic Canada’s ability to compete, but the policy environment in which companies are being asked to invest. Farming our Future recommends action under five pillars:
- Support: Make Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada the federal champion for aquaculture industry promotion, giving seafood farmers greater access to programs available to other Canadian farmers.
- Efficiency: Cut timelines for new site approvals and expansions by 50 per cent by 2030.
- Predictability: Better align regulations across Atlantic provinces, reduce federal-provincial duplication and introduce mutual recognition for regulated aquaculture products approved in trusted jurisdictions.
- Innovation: Create developmental licences that allow new technologies and farming approaches to be tested under appropriate environmental oversight.
- Sustainability: Ensure marine protection and responsible finfish farming can coexist, including reviewing policies that prevent aquaculture from operating in Marine Protected Areas.
Some Atlantic Canadian approval processes can currently take as long as seven years, compared with a target of 26 weeks for straightforward applications in Norway. Once approved, a project can take another three to five years before the first harvest.
“Atlantic Canada already has strong environmental standards. What’s needed is a regulatory system that is efficient, coordinated and predictable,” Taylor said. “Reducing duplication and providing clearer timelines will give companies the certainty they need to make long-term investments here.”
Public support for aquaculture is also at a record high. A 2026 regional poll found 85 per cent of Atlantic Canadians support aquaculture, reaching 93 per cent in Prince Edward Island, 87 per cent in New Brunswick and 83 per cent in both Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador.
Taylor said the report provides a roadmap for governments at a time when economic growth, Canadian food production and the strength of rural and coastal communities are increasingly important priorities.
