Lobster and Crab ELOGS Mandatory in Most Canadian Fisheries by January 1, 2025

Canada’s commercial fishing industry is taking a significant step forward. By January 1, 2025, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) will require electronic logbooks (ELOGS) in Crab and Lobster fisheries across the Gulf and Quebec regions, with other regions and fisheries to follow shortly.

ELOGS will replace paper logbooks, streamlining data entry for harvesters and ensuring faster data delivery to resource managers for improved decision-making. This is an important move towards better-managed commercial fisheries. The mandatory adoption will continue to roll out for other fisheries throughout 2025 and 2026.

Vericatch offers the only ELOG app in Canada, and we are nationally certified for both Lobster and Crab, as well as:

• Groundfish, including Redfish, Cod, Turbot, and Halibut
• Small Pelagics, including Mackerel, Herring, Alewife, Capelin, and Smelts
• Whelk, Bivalve Mollusks, and Squid 
• Salmon

We will support all commercial fisheries requiring ELOGS by the time they are mandatory.

As 2024 marks the final year for paper logbooks in many Lobster and Crab fisheries, Vericatch urges harvesters to adopt ELOGS now. Starting early means fewer headaches during the busy fishing season—and for just $60/year, you can streamline catch reporting and gain a competitive edge.

“Vericatch ELOGS are easy to use and I enjoyed working with them on a daily basis. Eliminating the paper logbooks to use ELOGS on your phone or tablet is the future. I would recommend ELOGS to all harvesters to download the App and get started!” says Curtis Snelgrove, a 3L Fish Harvester.

Next week, we’re hosting ELOG webinars in English on November 27th and French on November 28th to guide harvesters through the transition from paper to electronic logbooks. Can’t make it? Don’t worry—we’ll share recordings with all registrants.

We’ll also host in-person ELOG training sessions in Quebec and the Gulf regions before the 2025 season. Check out the full list here and stay tuned for updates on our social media or newsletter. These sessions are a great opportunity for harvesters to see our ELOGS in action, try them for themselves, and ask any questions.  

The following articles include more information on ELOGS and the importance of digital catch reporting:

• How digital catch reporting improves fisheries management
• Why mobile apps are more stable and reliable for fishermen
• How we safeguard fishermen’s data

About Vericatch: Vericatch is a Canadian-owned fishtech company specializing in developing robust catch reporting and seafood traceability software to support a stronger, more sustainable fishing industry. Founded by a team of fishermen and technologists, Vericatch is uniquely positioned as the only company nationally qualified by the DFO offering a mobile app and true online/offline functionality. We design our products to serve fishermen first.