Nunavut shrimp fishery back in business

After years of limited shrimp fishing in Nunavut, a British factory-freezer vessel is reporting impressive results in waters near Qikiqtarjuaq, the Baffin Fisheries Coalition reports.

Jerry Ward, chief executive of the Baffin Fisheries Coalition, said the group contracted the British vessel, which has made four trips to the area this season. Profits from the enterprise go to the coalition.

"We're approaching 1,500 tonnes of overall harvest for us this year," said Ward. "We expect to fully remain fishing until, we hope, the end of November or until the average daily harvest makes it uneconomical. Then we'll have to leave."

Ward says the market and price for cold-water shrimp has been steady this year.

All of BFC's shrimp is offloaded in Greenland and then shipped around the world.

Two years ago, there was no fishing for shrimp in what's known as Shrimp Fishing Area One.

The Baffin Fisheries Coalition has a 2,400-tonne quota in that area. Ward said this year's results will determine if it makes business sense to fish shrimp there in years to come.