08-07-2025
Trump takes direct aim at New Brunswick company
U.S. President Donald Trump has posted a video to social media that takes direct aim at New Brunswick-based Cooke Inc., suggesting it's 'pillaging' fish from American waters.
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The video dredges up a fight over the fishing of Atlantic menhaden, a small baitfish, in Chesapeake Bay along the coastline of six east coast states.
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The concerns aren't new. Earlier this year, a U.S. court dismissed a longstanding lawsuit against Cooke over foreign ownership allegations.
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And again the company is rejecting claims.
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'The generations to come will not have fishermen,' states one U.S. fish captain in the video.
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'Two-thirds of the total amount of catch for the entire Atlantic coast is being removed by a Canadian company,' another rep continues.
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The video, posted to Trump's Truth Social account, the social media platform he owns, appears to be crafted by the president's staff.
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It highlights a call for executive order from the Trump administration 'to end this complete ecological and economic disaster.'
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'Ending industrial bait fishing in the Atlantic and Gulf of America would be the single most significant presidential action ever to elevate the U.S. fishing economy,' it states, using the administration's preferred name for the Gulf of Mexico.
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Trump did sign an executive order in April that openly alleged unfair trading practices from foreign partners, though without specifics.
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That said, it didn't say anything directly about ending industrial bait fishing.
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It did call for, among several other things, a review of all geographic limits on commercial fishing, including protected areas, within 180 days of the order.
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It's unclear if the video signals new details.
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The video posted by Trump doesn't actually name Cooke, but details past allegations surrounding the company.
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Those appeared to be put to bed earlier this year, when a U.S. judge fully dismissed a lawsuit against Cooke that alleged the seafood company was using shell companies to skirt American fishing laws.
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It stemmed from Cooke's purchase of Virginia-based Omega Protein in 2017.
Omega is affiliated with another company, American-owned Ocean Fleet Services and Ocean Harvesters, that operates a menhaden fishery in Chesapeake Bay.
