The United States was aware that most fishermen, whether from the United States or Canada,
sell their salmon and herring to processors in their own country and in their own region. This was
because of the difficulty of keeping the fish fresh on long ocean trips from region to region. However,
in the border region there was a sound commercial basis for bilateral trade in unprocessed fish. Canadian
processors were free to cross the border and to purchase United States-caught salmon and herring.
They could therefore extend their production runs and decrease their unit cost by making purchases
from fishermen in the adjacent areas across the border when the fishing season was open and/or at
a peak in those areas. However, similar efficiencies were foreclosed to the United States processors
and exporters owing to the Canadian export restrictions.