Millinocket salmon farm project paused due to tariffs ‘roller coaster’
A planned $300 million land-based salmon farm in Millinocket is on hold, with its developers pointing directly at the Trump administration's tariff policies as the reason.
Great Northern Salmon, the company behind the project, announced the pause on Thursday. CEO Marianne Naess said the decision stems from an unpredictable trade environment that has made it nearly impossible to forecast the project's true cost. The facility, which would be built at the former Great Northern Paper mill site, was designed to produce 7,500 metric tons of salmon each year using a recirculating aquaculture system.
"It's a roller coaster," Naess said by phone Thursday. "What the rule is today, we don't know if that's going to be the same tomorrow."
The company, formerly known as Katahdin Salmon, had been preparing for a spring groundbreaking. Under the original timeline, eggs would be placed in the facility by spring 2028, with fish reaching market by early 2030. Naess said the planning work has progressed substantially, but the rapidly shifting tariff landscape has forced a halt.
The project had been hailed by local officials as a potential economic turning point for the region. It was expected to generate more than 100 construction jobs and dozens of permanent positions once operational. Town leaders previously described the redevelopment of the long-dormant mill property as a "win-win" for an area that has struggled economically since the paper industry's decline.
Much of the equipment and materials Great Northern Salmon needs are manufactured outside the United States, primarily in Canada and in European countries such as Norway. Naess said the company has little choice but to import them.
"There's no market for it because there's no industry here in the U.S.," she said. "We have to import it to be able to have U.S. production."
The pause comes amid an escalating trade dispute between the United States and Canada. The two countries exchanged roughly $872 billion in goods and services last year, according to The Associated Press. Canada announced Wednesday that seafood would be excluded from its retaliatory tariffs, a move that brought relief to Maine lobster fishermen, but broader uncertainty around trade policy continues to ripple through industries that depend on cross-border supply chains.
Naess stressed that the company's frustration is directed at federal policy, not at Maine. She said politicians and members of the public across the state have broadly supported the project, and the company remains committed to the idea of establishing Maine as a hub for domestic aquaculture.
"It's a great project for Maine and for the U.S., but it needs to be cost-competitive with competition from Iceland, northern Europe and Asia," Naess said. She noted that more than 95 percent of fresh salmon consumed in the United States is imported.
Resuming the project, Naess said, would not be complicated once conditions allow. The bigger question is timing.
"We just need to ensure that there's a predictable path forward," she said.
"We still believe in Maine as a U.S. hub for aquaculture," Naess added. "So, we hope it's possible to get back on track once the situation stabilizes."
