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The Seafood Sector Renewal Program (SSRP) is a cost shared
funding program to support projects that improve the competitiveness
and sustainabilty of Nova Scotia's seafood industry. The
objectives of the Seafood Sector Renewal Program encompass
the following areas.
Enhancing Value
Access to top quality fish resources, proximity to major markets and transportation
links are some of the key features that can give Nova Scotia
seafood exporters an advantage in today’s highly competitive
global seafood marketplace. Focusing on premium quality products
will take advantage of these features allow increase the value
of seafood exports. Key to this strategy is enhancing quality
and value at all steps of the seafood value chain. Funding
will be used to develop and promote harvesting, storage, shipping
and processing techniques that provide premium quality products
to the market.
Diversification
The high Canadian dollar and the downturn in the US economy have eroded much
of the profit available from our traditional export market.
Today it is clear that processors need to reduce their reliance
on the US market and diversify exports to other global destinations.
There is also a need to develop new products for our traditional
exports. Processors will be supported to invest in product
development to add value to existing products and open up
new market opportunities.
Productivity
The seafood industry is faced with rising production costs due to a number of
factors. These include labour intensive production systems,
labour shortages, rising energy costs, etc. Access to technical
expertise and capital is a problem in some parts of the seafood
sector. Support will be provided for processors to assess
their labour/productivity situation and technology that may
reduce production costs and improve product quality/consistency.
Seed funding will also be available for technology demonstration
projects to help secure financing from other public and private
sources.
Eco Labeling / Food Certification
A major market trend has emerged regarding the sustainability of seafood. Consumers
and major retailers are demanding certification and product
labels from independent eco-certification bodies. These bodies
examine the harvesting, processing, and shipping chain of
various fisheries in detail to determine sustainability against
predetermined criteria. Without eco-certification at the resource
level, seafood exporters risk losing existing markets and
diminished opportunities to develop new ones. Cost shared
funding support will be provided to assess the market advantages
of obtaining eco-certification, which certifying organization
is the most appropriate and to carry out eco-certification
assessments.
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