Fisheries Council celebrates the selection of the Ocean Supercluster
Fisheries Council celebrates the selection of the Ocean Supercluster
OTTAWA, February 15, 2018 – The Fisheries Council of Canada (FCC) is celebrating the selection of the Ocean Supercluster as one of the five winning applications to the federal Innovation Supercluster Initiative.
Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains made the announcement this morning in Ottawa. The superclusters will each receive significant federal funding to leverage the industry funding committed by each supercluster partnerships. The Ocean Supercluster will create new collaborations to boost innovation and modernization in Canada’s ocean industries.
Paul Lansbergen, FCC President, said, “This is great news for Canadians living along our coasts and elsewhere. I applaud the federal government for investing in the futures of Canadians who make a living from our ocean resources.”
Canada’s Ocean Supercluster is an industry-led partnership that brings together sectors – including fisheries, renewable energy, aquaculture, oil and gas, shipping, and defence – to co-invest to adopt and commercialize technologies to solve shared challenges. The Supercluster of over 70 organizations will also invest to develop talent, improve supply chain opportunities, and foster more ocean start-ups to build the innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem.
“The OECD and the World Bank both recognize the great potential of the ocean economy. Both project ocean-based industries to outperform the growth of the global economy as a whole.” Lansbergen said. He went on to say, “Of equal importance is that we realize that growth potential with as light a footprint as possible. This supercluster will help us innovate toward that goal.”
The Canadian seafood industry creates 80,000 direct jobs, mainly in coastal and rural communities, and accounts for $6.6 billion in exports. 80 per cent of Canadian wild seafood production by value is certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, the international gold standard for measuring fishery sustainability.
Since the Council was established in 1915, the Fisheries Council of Canada has been the national voice for Canada’s commercial fisheries. Our members include small, medium and larger-sized companies along with Indigenous enterprises that harvest fish in Canada’s three oceans and inland waters. Member companies are also processors who process the majority of Canada’s fish and seafood production. FCC members take pride in being key employers in their communities, providing jobs and creating an economic base for other local businesses.
For further information: Fisheries Council of Canada, info@fisheriescouncil.org
February 15, 2018 – Fisheries Council celebrates the selection of the Ocean Supercluster
