Resource Works is proud to announce that Jennifer Woodland, one of the most accomplished leaders in Canadian aquaculture, has joined its Board of Directors.
Woodland is the Corporate Relationships Director Canada for Cermaq Canada, and her career spans both coasts of the country. Before joining Cermaq, she was Managing Director of Grieg Seafood BC from 2022 to 2026 and served as CEO of Nuu-chah-nulth Seafood LP, a First Nation owned commercial fishery enterprise on Vancouver Island.
Her connection to the resource economy began early. A native Newfoundlander, Woodland grew up in the commercial fishery and watched the 1992 cod crisis devastate the communities around her. That collapse fueled her conviction that aquaculture can feed a growing world while easing the pressure on wild stocks.
“I know what it looks like when a resource economy disappears, because I lived it,” says Woodland. “The cod moratorium taught me how important sustainability is. It’s the difference between a community with a future and a community without one.”
Woodland’s career reflects that conviction. She spent years with Cooke Aquaculture helping to revitalize communities on the south coast of Newfoundland and served as a business development expert for the federal government’s Aboriginal Aquaculture in Canada Initiative. She chaired the Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance for two years and is now in her third term as chair of the BC Salmon Farmers’ Association.
Her work has earned national and international recognition. She was named NAIA Aquaculturist of the Year in 2014, received the Alumni of the Year Award from Memorial University of Newfoundland’s Marine Institute in 2024 and was recently featured on Intrafish’s list of 22 women shaping the industry through their influence, creativity and innovation.
“Jennifer has spent her career proving that sustainable production, Indigenous partnership and thriving rural communities go together,” said Stewart Muir, President and CEO of Resource Works. “She brings knowledge, credibility and heart to this board, and we could not be prouder to welcome her.”
For Woodland, the appointment is a natural extension of the causes that have driven her from the beginning: sustainable food production, Indigenous reconciliation and rural economic development.
“Resource Works speaks for the people whose livelihoods depend on responsible resource development, and those are the people I have worked for my whole life,” says Woodland. “Canada has an enormous opportunity to lead the world in sustainable food production. I am honoured to join a board that understands what is at stake and what is possible.”
Woodland is the mother of two girls and lives in Campbell River, where the future of coastal communities is not a policy question but a daily reality. Resource Works is fortunate to have her voice at the table.
Angela Wrigley is the Editorial and Digital Director of Resource Works.
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