Critical B.C. herring being used for pet food say conservationists, First Nations

The annual British Columbia herring fishery is underway, but not without controversy.

Critics, including First Nations and conservationists, are calling for a moratorium on the herring harvest.

The fish are one of the foundations of the food chain in the Salish Sea that support other fish and marine mammals.

But where they were once incredibly abundant, decades of commercial fishing have reduced their population to a fraction of what it once was.

“Herring were found everywhere, they spawned almost on all the shorelines,” said Ian McAllister, with the Conservation group Pacific Wild.

Over the last few winters, he’s tracked the commercial herring fishery in the Strait of Georgia and believes Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is making a mistake in approving it this year.

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He’s not alone.

“It just doesn’t make any sense that DFO is letting this go and they’re bending to the will of the Commercial Herring Fishery,” said Tsawout Hereditary Chief Eric Pelkey.

Despite those objections, DFO approved the winter herring fishery and substantially increased the amount of herring the commercial boats can catch.

Also this winter, DFO made a rule change that allows for a transfer of quotas.

Critics say this means hardly any of the herring caught will be for human consumption, but will instead end up as feedstock for fish farms, pet food, and fertilizer.

“So we’re taking this wild, incredibly important fish from the mouths of killer whales from the mouths of wild salmon … going into very low-value commodities.”

In a statement, the DFO said its 2024-2025 herring fisheries management plan employs “precautionary approaches that support the long-term conservation of stocks,” with harvest rates based on peer-reviewed science.

“Harvest rates used to set total allowable catch limits are based on mature spawning biomass forecasts, leaving juvenile fish and a significant proportion of the adult population available to support ecosystem processes,” it said.

“DFO makes management decisions about the size and extent of permitted herring fisheries on an annual basis, based on the best available science and the knowledge and input of First Nations, commercial harvesters, and others that is gathered through our extensive consultation and engagement efforts.”

Critics say that’s not a good enough answer, and that whatever amount of herring ends up being turned into pet and fish food would be better off supporting salmon, porpoise and orca populations instead.