The federal government has given the Hay River fish plant a key stamp of approval, clearing the way for Great Slave Lake fish to be sold across Canada and around the world. The Government of Northwest Territories announced the accreditation on May 4, 2026, from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
This means the $21.75-million facility can now package and ship fish to national and international markets for the first time. The plant, which opened in 2024, can process up to 1.5 million pounds of fish each year. More than $8.8 million in federal money helped pay for construction through CanNor and Infrastructure Canada.
Along with the accreditation, the territorial government has updated its Commercial Fishery Support Program. The program helps cover costs to bring experienced fishers from outside the NWT and to train local residents new to the industry. These upgrades come at a time when commercial fish production on Great Slave Lake is picking up. The harvest grew to about 850,000 pounds in the summer of 2025, up from roughly 700,000 pounds in 2023.
The lake used to support a much larger fishery, but production had dropped to less than half of historic levels over the past decade. In 2017, the territory released a plan to turn things around. Since then, the new plant has been a central piece of that work. For now, the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation runs the plant under a three-year deal with the territory. The Tu Cho Fishers Cooperative has its eye on taking over operations down the road.
The CFIA accreditation and the funding update aim to make the most of a good harvest season ahead. Local leaders see the changes as a boost for fishers and the Hay River economy. Caitlin Cleveland, the minister responsible for the commercial fishing strategy, has pointed to the new accreditation and the updated support program as ways to help the industry keep building on its recent growth. Fishers on the lake say that being able to sell to bigger markets could mean better prices and steadier work.
