Bos Smoked Fish Inc. ordered to pay a $25,000 fine for illegally importing protected European Eel meat

August 2, 2024 – Brampton, Ontario – Environment and Climate Change Canada

On August 2, 2024, Bos Smoked Fish Inc. was fined $25,000 by the Ontario Court of Justice, in Brampton. The company pleaded guilty, on August 1, 2024, to one charge for violating the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act. This offence relates to illegally importing European Eel parts, including smoked eel and eel fillets. The $25,000 fine will be directed to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund.

In addition to the fine, approximately 662 kilograms of eel were ordered to be forfeited, which ensures that the illegally imported product is removed from the commercial market. The importer paid $35,000 for the eel meat.

In April 2023, Bos Smoked Fish Inc. imported 662 kilograms of what was declared as processed eel into Canada from the Netherlands. Environment and Climate Change Canada enforcement officers inspected the shipment and took samples for DNA analysis. An Environment and Climate Change Canada laboratory determined that the majority of the imported product was European Eel.

The European Eel is listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Appendix II–listed species are species that need controls to protect them, therefore importers must obtain a permit to import them lawfully into Canada.

The company was charged with one count of importing European Eel, a CITES-listed species, without a permit, which is a contravention of subsection 6(2) of the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act.

Quick facts

• The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora is an international agreement that Canada joined in 1975. As a party to the agreement, Canada adopted domestic legislation to regulate or, in some cases, prohibit trade in specific wild animal and plant species, as well as their respective parts and derivatives. The Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act is the Canadian federal law through which Canada meets its obligations under CITES.
• The European Eel, listed in Appendix II of CITES, is classified as critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List (2018) and is subject to the European Union eel regulations. Species are listed in Appendix II when there is a risk of extinction unless trade is regulated. Import and export of species listed in Appendix II are possible if the appropriate permits are obtained. Specimens imported into Canada must be accompanied by a CITES export permit (or re-export certificate) issued by the exporting country. The permit is part of the system of strict trade controls which help ensure that any trade in these species is legal, sustainable, and traceable.
• Created in 1995, the Environmental Damages Fund is a Government of Canada program administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada. The Fund directs monies received from fines, penalties, court orders, and voluntary payments to projects that will repair environmental damage or benefit the environment. The Fund aims to invest in areas where the environmental damage occurred.
• Call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, or 1-800-711-1800 if you are located in the Province of Quebec, to anonymously report wildlife crime. You may be eligible for a reward of up to $2,000 from Crime Stoppers.

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