Fisheries and Oceans Canada is defending its July decision to reduce the herring quota in the Bay of Fundy, after a major New Brunswick employer blamed the decision for major layoffs.

"We recognize the economic impacts this decision will have on the families and communities that rely on income from fishing and processing herring," said Lauren Sankey, DFO spokesperson, in an emailed statement late Friday afternoon.

"But such a decision is necessary to ensure recovery and protect the resource for future generations," Sankey said.

Connors Bros., a herring processing company in Blacks Harbour, near St. George, announced this week it's laying off 20 per cent of its workforce, which is estimated to be about 100 people.

"The staff reduction is a result of the Canadian Government's Department of Fishery and Ocean's (DFO's) July 2024 decision to cut the total allowable herring catch for the Bay of Fundy by 24%," a release from the company said Thursday.

The release went on to ask the government to "reconsider its science" and re-evaluate the quota reduction.

Andrea Anderson-Mason, MLA for Fundy-The-Isles-Saint John West, also blamed the reduction for the layoffs at Connors Bros.

"It's incredibly difficult. We have seen the writing on the wall, we have seen the signals," she said.

Connors Bros. laid off 20 per cent of its workforce on Thursday, which is an estimated 100 people. (CBC)

But the federal agency is not reconsidering.

Sankey said Atlantic herring stock in the Bay of Fundy is in the critical zone for the sixth year in a row.

"DFO Science advice indicates that [quota] reductions are needed to rebuild the stock out of the critical zone," she said.

Federal Fisheries and Oceans Minister Dianne Lebouthillier set the herring quota for the Bay of Fundy at 16,000 tonnes for the 2024 through 2027 seasons.

To date, the quota has been cut by more than half, from 50,000 tonnes in 2016 and 42,500 tonnes in both 2017 and 2018. 

Stock assessments are based on indicators such as at-sea surveys conducted by the industry that are then independently analyzed by DFO scientists, Sankey said.

Additionally, the herring fishery is conducted in parts of the bay where herring gather in larger groups, "which can give the perception that the stock is more abundant than it actually is," she said.

"As a forage species, Atlantic herring is an important food source for larger fish and whales. Herring also supports an important commercial fishery in Atlantic Canada, and is used as bait in other fisheries, such as lobster and snow crab."

Following the Connors Bros. layoffs, the Fundy North Fishermen's Association warned of challenges for the region's lobster fishery this fall, because herring is used as bait for lobster traps.

The association shared a letter from Connors Bros. with CBC News that said the company could no longer provide herring bait to the lobster industry, following the July DFO reduction, because of the reduced herring available.

"Decisions will continue to be informed by the best available science regarding the stock of Atlantic herring in southwest Nova Scotia and the Bay of Fundy," Sankey said.

Connors Bros., a leading supplier of canned herring and a major employer in southwestern New Brunswick, is laying off 20 per cent of its workers, the company announced Thursday. 

The plant in Blacks Harbour, near St. George, employs up to 450 people, depending on the season. 

A Connors spokesperson did not respond when asked exactly how many people had been laid off.

A news release from the company blames the federal government's July decision to cut the herring quota in the Bay of Fundy.

"We've been operating in this community for over 130 years and this is a heartbreaking decision, but it's necessary to keep our plant viable moving forward," Connors Bros. general Manager Chad Baum said in the release.

The company will continue to ask the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to reconsider its science and to re-evaluate the future quota recommendations, the release said.

The plant will continue operating with a reduced workforce, and affected employees were given a six-week notice.

Connors. Bros. operates as a division of Clover Leaf Seafoods, which is owned by the Bumble Bee Seafood Company,  based in San Diego, Calif.

Catch limits will be reduced by about a quarter for the 2024 season, the federal government announced in July, citing declining herring stocks.

Fisheries spokesperson Lauren Sankey said in an email that the department would not be able to offer comment Thursday on the layoffs or the blame from Connors.

MLA says layoffs a major loss for area

Andrea Anderson-Mason, MLA for Fundy-The-Isles-Saint John West, said she's heard from the province that it's estimated about 100 people are laid off but that some local residents say it could be slightly more.

"As you can imagine, this very much feels like a punch in the gut for my community," said Anderson-Mason, who sat as a Progressive Conservative on the government side of the legislature.

While she has spoken with the province to make sure affected workers are assisted, Anderson-Mason said she's disappointed that the Department of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour was not present in the community on Thursday.

MLA Andrea Anderson-Mason says she wishes the province had done more to show up in Blacks Harbour on Thursday to help laid-off workers. (Radio-Canada)

"I have heard government offices say we are looking for other places these people can go to work, but it's not always that simple," she said.

Greg Turner, the labour minister, said in an email statement late Thursday that the province is working with the company to support workers and is planning an information session for them "in the short term." Laid-off workers can also contact WorkingNB for job support, he added.

"We understand that this is a significant blow to the workers, their families, the community and the local economy, and our thoughts go out to them at this difficult time," Turner said.

Anderson-Mason said the area is economically depressed, and there is no public transportation, so it's challenging for some workers to simply start working in another community.

"And so sometimes these speaking notes that you get from the province and government don't necessarily reflect the reality that is the situation that we're facing," she said.

Connors Bros. processes herring in Blacks Harbour, about 70 kilometres west of Saint John on the Bay of Fundy. (Robert F. Bukaty/The Associated Press)

Eastern Charlotte Mayor John Craig said he suspects the company will be restructuring to ensure operations can continue, but that doesn't help those who were laid off.

"Every job lost is a major loss for our area," he said, describing it as a "domino effect" on the community. He said provincial officials will be in Blacks Harbour next week to help those laid off. 

The work at Connors Bros. was hands-on, manual labour that employed a wide variety of people,  including lots of immigrants, and Anderson-Mason said she's heard from seniors and single parents who worked there and are now employed.

Anderson-Mason said the layoffs are not a surprise given the recent DFO reduction of the herring quota. 

"It's incredibly difficult, we have seen the writing on the wall, we have seen the signals," she said.

The company defined the small community of Blacks Harbour, which has a population of about 900, Anderson-Mason said. 

"I don't want to lose sight of the fact that we have families who were living in very challenging situations. These are not high-paying jobs, but they are really important jobs."

"And they are the jobs that keep food on the table for families."

Fishing group warns of indirect impact on lobster fishery

A southwest New Brunswick fishing association is warning of tumble-down effects on the lobster fishery this fall after the herring quota reduction.

"It's a devastating loss for our coastal communities that could have been avoided," said Amanda Johnson, executive director of the Fundy North Fishermen's Association.

She believes the Connors layoffs could have been avoided if the herring quota hadn't been cut.

Because lobster fishermen often use herring for bait, Johnson said the industry will be squeezed when lobster season opens in November.

The Fundy North Fishermen's Association is concerned that the herring quota reduction will impact the lobster industry, which uses the fish as bait. (CBC)

"It's impacted us as well because Connors is no longer able to supply bait this year for the lobster fishery, which is going to cause severe challenges come this fall when we open," Johnson said.

In July, Connors sent a letter to the association to say the company could no longer supply them with herring bait.

"We appreciate the added challenge this will bring to your lobster fishermen, but we simply do not have enough catch to satisfy our markets and will have no excess fish to sell," Connors president Matt Walsh said in the letter.

Johnson said lobster fishermen are now scrambling to find alternative baits.

"Ultimately, DFO and the Fisheries Act, part of their responsibility is to protect and help coastal communities," she said.

"And these layoffs are not doing that, it's going to impact a lot of people in a negative way."

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans has again lowered the Atlantic herring quota in southwestern Nova Scotia and the Bay of Fundy, this time for 2024 to 2027.

DFO has announced the total allowable catch for the fishery will be 16,000 tonnes per season over those four seasons. The 2023 allocation was 21,000 tonnes. 

"Atlantic herring, like many fisheries, faces challenges as a result of climate change, which has led to herring that are smaller in size and that have more difficulty surviving and reproducing in their ecosystem," says a news release from the department. 

The Atlantic herring stock fell into a critical zone in 2018 and remains there, according to the department. To date, the quota has been cut by more than half, from 50,000 tonnes in 2016 and 42,500 tonnes in both 2017 and 2018. 

Previously, the industry and conservation groups have been at odds over quota amounts.

"We recognize the economic impacts this decision will have on the families and communities that rely on income from fishing and processing herring. But such a decision is necessary to ensure recovery and protect the resource for future generations," said the DFO release.

A statement from the Seafood Producers Association of Nova Scotia on Friday said the DFO's decision was "shocking" and will be devastating for many operators and plants in rural Maritime communities.

It said the herring fishery in southwestern Nova Scotia and the Bay of Fundy supports 1,000 jobs and a processing sector in the province and New Brunswick.

"Using DFO's own overly pessimistic science, industry showed that a [21,000-tonne quota] could be maintained while completing the science process and ensuring that the stock would be rebuilt," the statement said.

It said imposing the quota over four years would make it even more difficult for companies to operate in the region.

Action centre applauds four-year quota

Meanwhile, the Ecology Action Centre and Oceans North advocated for the quota to be 13,000 tonnes — but still the organizations were pleased the department set the total allowable catch closer to what they've advocated for than in years past. 

Shannon Arnold, the associate director of marine programs at the Ecology Action Centre, commended DFO for implementing the quota for four years — rather than bringing the issue back year after year.  

"This is going to allow for like a good chunk of time to step back, redo the science framework, look at creating the required rebuilding plan for this stock and really taking the time." 

Arnold said the short-term benefits of a higher quota allocation, which industry advocated for, could undermine the economic future of coastal communities. 

Earlier this year, an economic analysis released by Oceans North said a rebuilt Atlantic herring stock could be worth at least $402 million. 

"We are still a little concerned that it might not be enough, but it is closer to where we think it should go," said Katie Schleit, a fisheries director at the non-profit conservation group. "Forage fish like herring are important not only for their economic value as a fishery but also for the economic value that they provide in the water as food source." 

Under the Fisheries Act, there's a requirement to rebuild fish stocks in the critical zone within a "reasonable time frame."

Michelle Greenlaw, a research scientist with DFO, said the total allowable catch is not necessarily associated with a rebuilding timeline. 

"But this could be part of a sustainable fishing strategy to rebuild," said Greenlaw. "We don't have a rebuilding target set in place for the herring stock — usually it's within two generations."