Fishing Industry Has Overexpanded

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 306, 31 December 1935, Page 10

Fishing Industry Has Overexpanded

VICTORIA, B. C. —Canada’s great Pacific fishing industry is overexpanded, with the result that returns to fishermen and operators are too small, according to a sharp warning issued by the British Columbia Government in an official report.

Unlike some industries, where expansion depends on economic factors alone, the fish canning industry only be exploited profitably to the extent permitted by the available supply of fish, which cannot be increased, the report states. The limit of expansion imposed by the availability of fish has long ago been reached, it is declared, and further economic expansion need not be looked for until the supply or raw materials has materially increased, and at the present rate of exploitation this cannot be expected in the near future.

The report also draws attention to the great amount of fishing gear used in recent years but says this has not increased the total production or profits because of higher operating costs. The Government is discouraging further unnecessary capital expenditure in the way of liew canneries in an endeavor to stabilize the industry.