Grieg Seafood sells operations in Canada and northern Norway

Grieg Seafood has sold its operations in Canada and northern Norway to Cermaq — a global salmon farming company based out of Oslo.

The sale includes assets and operations in Marystown, on Newfoundland's Burin Peninsula. 

The company employs 110 people in the community, operating 14 seawater licences in Placentia Bay and a land-based freshwater facility with offices in Marystown.

Marystown Mayor Brian Keating said the town is going to be cautious as the sale moves forward, adding the town needs economic stability but not at the cost of the environment.

"We did have many issues with Grieg Sea Farms with what we'll say is misinformation or lack of transparency," Keating told CBC News.

"We're not going to sell the farm just to get a few roads and hospitals."

WATCH | Cermaq says inheriting Newfoundland operations presents great opportunity: 

Grieg Seafood’s N.L. operations sold to global salmon farming company

6 hours ago

Duration 1:15

Grieg Seafood has signed an agreement to sell its operations in Newfoundland and Labrador to Cermaq, a global salmon company based in Oslo. Grieg has 110 employees in the province, with connections to Placentia Bay and Marystown. Cermaq CEO Steven Rafferty says it presents a great opportunity for the company, while the mayor of Marystown remains cautiously optimistic.

In a news release on Thursday, Grieg said Cermaq is "well placed to take the Newfoundland region further."

"Cermaq shares our values of farming with the lowest possible environmental impact and highest possible fish welfare, as well as of respecting and contributing to the rural and Indigenous communities where the operations take place," wrote company CEO Nina Willumsen. 

"We are confident that the region is in the best hands and that it will continue to create local value long into the future."

In February, Grieg hit pause on its plans to expand the large-scale salmon operation in Marystown. The decision was largely driven by an inability to find a financing partner and the threat of economic tariffs from the United States.

Construction of the 17,500-square-metre post-smolt facility had also been delayed in October 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grieg's first harvest from Placentia Bay came in 2023 with roughly 5,000 tonnes of salmon.

The company told CBC News on Thursday it would not do interviews.

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