ST. JOHN’S — The Newfoundland and Labrador government is looking for someone to clean up 110 vats of rotting fish sauce left behind in a long-abandoned factory in St. Mary’s, N.L.

Steve Ryan, the town’s mayor, says the invitation to tender posted to the province’s procurement website this week has brought hope and relief to the town of about 300 people.

However, he says the town’s long fight to have the building cleaned up has been plagued by setbacks, and the high spirits in St. Mary’s come with a healthy dose of skepticism.

The Atlantic Seafood Sauce Company factory opened in St. Mary’s in 1990, but the owners abandoned it roughly a decade later after a series of legal battles.

Whoever wins the contract to clean out the inside of the plant will have to first solidify the remaining fish sauce, some of which has seeped into pools on the factory floor.

Ryan says he expects the work will take four to six weeks, after which the government will look for someone to tear down the building.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 14, 2026.

Sarah Smellie, The Canadian Press