Indigenous groups, Cape Breton company get slice of lucrative Arctic surf clam fishery

A company from Arichat, N.S., and Indigenous groups in the Atlantic provinces and Quebec have been awarded part of the multimillion-dollar Arctic surf clam fishery.

The federal government calls it a step toward reconciliation, but fisheries giant Clearwater Seafoodsis promising legal action after losing its monopoly.

Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc said a licence is being awardedto the Five Nations Clam Company, a new group that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans saidis comprised of First Nations from the five easternmost provinces, which will partner with Premium Seafoods ofArichat to harvest, process and market the catch.

"The inclusion of participants from each Atlantic province and Quebec will allow the benefits of this lucrative fishery to flow to a broad group of First Nations, and will help create good, middle-class jobs for Indigenous peoples in each Atlantic province and Quebec," the minister said in a statement. "This is a powerful step toward reconciliation."

The government had already said the monopoly previously held by Clearwaterwould end this year. In September, LeBlancsaid a licence representing 25 per cent of the Arctic surf clam fishery would be introduced within the current allowable catch limits, and be awarded to a First Nations enterprise and its industry partner.

The bidding process was popular:The Department of Fisheries and Oceans said last month it wasevaluating nine proposals vying for 8,924 tonnes of surf clams in 2018.

Halifax-based Clearwater pioneered the fishery located mainly off Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, and generated almost $92million in revenues in 2016from the Arctic surf clam.

The company, which sells the clam in Asia for sushi, is calling foul on the decision following its unsuccessful bid, which involved partnering with 13Mi'kmaqbands in Nova Scotia.

"Clearwaterwill be pursuing legal options to address this failure in public policy and abuse of power by the Minister," the company said in a statement.

Decision undermines investment, Clearwater says

Clearwater saidthe decision will mean that middle-class jobs are lost, and some full-time jobs will become temporary seasonal work.The company saidit provides year-round jobs to452 people in 52 Atlantic Canadian communities.

"We have invested hundreds of millions to develop the fishery and the market, including$156 millionof investments in the last three years," the statement said.

"In this decision to expropriate investment value and undermine the good faith capital investment decisions of the private sector, the minister has destabilized the investment climate in the Canadian fisheries and the Canadian natural resource sector."

Company vice-president Christine Penney said in an email that Clearwater supports the government's bidfor more Indigenous participation in the fisheries.

"We believe the Mi'kmaq of Nova Scotia proposal was very strong and provided maximum benefits to Indigenous communities, putting Indigenous communities as full owners of the licence and resource. This proposal also presented an opportunity for the government to mitigate the unique impact this decision has on Clearwater and the communities in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia where we operate."

Premium Seafoods 'honoured'

Premium Seafoods CEO EdgarSamson, whose brother is Liberal MP Darrell Samson,said hiscompany was honoured by the decision and noted that it had recently temporarily closed its shrimp-processing plant in Arichatbecause of a reduction inquotas.

In an interview with CBC News, Samson said the ship would require a rotating crew totalling70 people, while the shrimp-processing plant had previously employed about 60. He couldn't say exactly how many people would be needed at the reopened plant.

There will also bemonths of work needed to trainpeople and builda new production line. Samson said the deal will employ people from Arichat, as well as from the First Nations involved.

"I think it's a very good thing for our community, for the First Nation communities and for our company," he said. "There's no question it's certainly a big asset, and we're looking forward to working on it."

A spokesperson for Five Nations Clam Company, Chief Aaron Sock of the Elsipogtogband in New Brunswick, commended the federal government for "its commitment to reconciliation" and said in a statement the decision would mean full-time employment for the Mi'kmaq and Innucommunities involved.

It's not yet clear what specificIndigenous communities areinvolved in the Five Nations Clam Company.

Nova Scotia Mi'kmaqchiefsdisappointed

Speaking on behalf of Nova Scotia'sMi'kmaqchiefs, MembertouChief TerryPaulsaid they were "extremely disappointed"their "monumental" bid with Clearwater lost out.

"Today, we hoped to be taking a step forward in reconciliation with the minister and federal government, and cannot help but feel dissatisfied with the decision made," he said in a statement.

Kelsea MacNeil, director of marketing and media relations forMembertouCorporation, said thebid by Nova Scotia's13 Mi'kmaqcommunities may have lost because the government simply wanted somebody other than Clearwater.

"It is disappointing because Indigenous groups and communities across Canada and across Nova Scotia, you know,you would hope would have the opportunity to choose who they want to work for and it shouldn't be up to the government to decide," she said.

She said, however, that Clearwater was launching its legal challenge independently.