People and Communities
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At the heart of the Atlantic Groundfish Council (AGC) are the people we are proud to call our members. It’s also their employees and communities, and the strong partnerships formed through working together toward a common goal. Connections are important to us.
Our People
Our people come from diverse backgrounds and from hundreds of communities throughout Atlantic Canada.
Our people work at every level from fishing vessels to fish plants, in offices, and more. They’re captains, mates, deckhands, engineers, quality controllers, processors, drivers, accountants, food safety specialists, trimmers, supervisors, and managers, all integral parts of helping fisheries thrive.
Working virtually year-round, our offshore groundfish sector provides steady, dependable employment.
Our Communities
We have a social obligation to the communities that have supported our industry for generations. From Canada’s oldest Acadian village in Pubnico that has been a centre for groundfish harvesting activity since the 1700s, to the town of Arnold’s Cove that hosts the largest cod processing plant in North America, the link between the fishery and the community has never been stronger.
Our industry provides thousands of year-round jobs in areas where employment alternatives are often limited, providing hundreds of millions of dollars in salaries to employees. We are an anchor industry that not only supports the crews on vessels and workers in plants, but also workers in boatyards, cold storage facilities, gear providers, welding shops, maintenance facilities and other service industries that are tightly integrated in the marine sector. Every year, over $400 million is paid to hundreds of local businesses for goods and services, such as product packaging, maintenance, groceries, fuel, equipment, freight, cold storage, etc. The responsibility to maintain strong economic foundations in these rural communities is not taken lightly as our shared future depends on it.
We value our communities, and we regularly provide cash and in-kind donations to noteworthy causes throughout Atlantic Canada, and support postsecondary institutions in the form of scholarships for students and contributions to research. Our people are also volunteer firefighters, team coaches, breakfast program volunteers and the lifeline of many local clubs and programs.
