This document discusses problems facing Atlantic Canada's lobster fishery and potential solutions. The key problems are that fishing licenses are increasingly leaving coastal communities as fishermen retire, prices are prohibitive for new individual entrants, and licenses are being consolidated by corporate interests. Several potential solutions are identified, including license banks that pool licenses for community ownership and leasing, loan funds for new entrants, policy changes to allow graduated license ownership, and developing regional seafood distribution models. The next steps proposed are to build a financial model, seek partners to design a small license bank pilot, and work on improving regional distribution value chains.
2. Contents
1. About this project
2. The lobster fishery in Atlantic Canada
3. Problem definition
4. Identifying problem causes
5. Potential solutions
6. Our current initiatives
3. About this project
Work stream that accompanies Valuing our Fisheries
work
‘Social Finance for Sustainable Fishing Communities’
April 2013 workshop
Now looking for feedback on
proposed steps forward and
suggestions
4. Atlantic Canada’s Lobster Fishery
Backbone of coastal economies
Limited entry fishery
38 LFAs
Trap limits and short seasons
10,000 licenses
$550 million landed / year
Supreme Court Saulnier v. Royal Bank of Canada 2008
‘Fishing license is property’
5. Owner-Operator and Fleet
Separation Policies
Have protected and maintain the inshore fishery as an
economic driver
License holders must fish
Processors cannot own fishing licenses
Essential policies, but:
Limited role for producer coops
No incorporate financial partnerships
6. Identifying THE Problem
Fishing licenses are leaving communities
Fishermen retire
New entrants don’t buy licenses
Licenses get consolidated by corporate interests
Not based in geographic communities
Business based on reducing number of harvesters through
capital-intensive production
Larger volume operations creates ‘efficiencies’ that allow more
offshore processing, low-value export
7. Example: Grand Manan
Population of 2,500 with 130
active lobster licenses
Approximately 1.5 hours by ferry
In 2012 temporarily won
protection of residency
requirements
Currently ~5 licenses at risk
9. Why is this a problem?
1) License costs do not reflect enterprise revenues
2) Upfront cost is prohibitive to individuals
3) Corporate interests are willing to pay more for
licenses
10. Problem Drivers (1/3)
1) License costs do not reflect enterprise revenues
a) Inflated by government ‘buybacks’
b) Retirement needs not built into current business plans
c) Uncertainty in fishing
i. Price fluctuations
ii. Regulatory environment
iii. Uncertainty about catch rates
11. Problem Drivers (2/3)
2) Upfront cost is prohibitive to individuals
a) No formal way to ‘graduate’ ownership of a license
b) Loans made with personal guarantees
Fisheries Loan Boards offer loans for ~20 years @ 6%
Very low default rate
Limited funding available and difficult to access
12. Problem Drivers (3/3)
3) Corporate interests over-value licenses
a) High premium on supply control and predictability
b) Longer time horizons
c) Management leverage from well-organized interest
groups
13. What kind of solutions?
1. License banks
2. Loan funds
3. Policy changes
4. Distribution system changes
14. 1. License Banks
Cooperative ownership that pools licences and quota that is
leased back to members at "fair“ rates
Opportunities
Community investment in productive resource
Allows long time horizons and better access to capital
Challenges
Determining ‘fair’ rates
Securing licenses at fair cost
Matching with owner-operator principles
Most existing examples are annual rotating lease structures
15. 2. Loan Funds
Fund to facilitate new entrants as patient capital to assist in
finding other funding
Opportunities
Can offer business planning / mentoring and strengthen fishing
associations
Can support good types of ‘trust agreements’
Could be funded through community platforms like CEDIFs
Challenges
Matching with owner-operator principles
Fisheries risk factors are enormous
Will not address fundamental issue of license cost
16. 3. Policy Changes
To allow formal graduated license ownership
To allow fishing associations to ‘own’ licenses in
license banks
Challenge
Avoiding making the situation worse by diluting
owner-operator protections
17. 4. Distribution Model Development
Developing a ‘Seafood Hub’ to redirect products away
from commodity markets
Partners:
Small and medium processors
Farmers markets, local retailers and restaurants
‘Regional’ wholesalers
Regional markets provide
price premiums and reduced
uncertainty
18. Next Steps
1) Building Financial Model with Common Good
Solutions
Financial questions – what should a license costs?
Retirement costs, revenue expectations, financing options
2) Seeking community partners to design details of a
small license bank (~6 licenses)
Potential to fund through a Nova Scotia CEDIF
3) Value chain work to improve regional distribution –
September 2013 ‘launch’
Hinweis der Redaktion
, but don’t provide community benefits from the productive resource