A global salmon farming company is pulling out of its B.C. operations amid uncertainty facing the industry in Canada.
Grieg Seafood ASA announced Thursday that it has signed an agreement to sell its businesses in Canada and in Finnmark, Norway, to global fish farming company Cermaq Group AS for US$990 million.
The deal includes Campbell River–based Grieg Seafood British Columbia, as well as Grieg Seafood Finnmark, Grieg Seafood Newfoundland, and the company’s North American sales division.
The sale marks Grieg’s exit from Canada, where the salmon farming industry has been grappling with the federal government’s plan to phase out open-net pen salmon farms by 2029.
“The regulatory instability and uncertainty caused by the federal government’s transition policy have impacted the salmon farming industry in B.C. for several years,” a Grieg Seafoods spokesperson told BIV.
“This was not the primary factor in our decision, but has been reviewed as part of the overall assessment.”
Grieg Seafoods said it will now focus on its operations in Western Norway, aiming to be a key player in advancing sustainable aquaculture in the region.
“Cermaq shares our values of farming with the lowest possible environmental impact and highest possible fish welfare, as well as of respecting and contributing to the rural and Indigenous communities where the operations take place,” said Nina Willumsen Grieg, CEO of Grieg Seafood, in a Thursday statement.
“We are confident that the regions are in the best hands and that they will continue to create local value long into the future.”
