Tag Archives: Coronavirus
Coronavirus: “These are not normal times” Situation changing ‘by the hour’ as seafood industry reels
New Brunswick’s seafood industry is reeling as the coronavirus fallout spreads in traditional markets around the world. “Things are changing by the hour,” said Melanie Sonnenberg of the Grand Manan Fishermen’s Association.,, It is a concern shared by other companies. It is estimated well over a thousand international workers are employed in the industry during the processing season, which begins in May. The spring lobster season on the Bay of Fundy’s north shore also starts in May. And in Dipper Harbour, fisherman Greg Thompson is pretty sure of one thing: prices will be rock bottom. >click to read< 06:47
Lobster buyers and processors call for shutdown of N.S. fishery as coronavirus guts world markets
Lobster buyers and processors in Nova Scotia want an immediate stop to all lobster fishing in the province because the coronavirus pandemic has crushed the markets for it,,, The industry association held an emergency conference call Thursday to discuss “the current unprecedented market situation.” The problem is that more lobsters are being caught than the industry or market can absorb. “The collapse of markets in the Pacific Rim, Europe and now North America make the challenge monumental as of today and for the short term future at least,” the summary states. >click to read< 06:07
Lobster fishery temporary shutdown proposed by buyers for LFAs 33 and 34 due to ‘collapse’ of markets -“Over 75 companies participated in the conversation and agreed all lobster harvesters in LFA 33 and 34 should immediately stop fishing and that a variation order be issued by DFO,” more, >click to read< 09:58
Coronavirus: B.C. commercial fishery amid sectors fearing COVID-19 current market fallout
B.C.’s seafood sector, currently strike by a collapse in exports to Asia for the reason that of COVID-19 all through the new Lunar New Yr, is bracing for the probability of cafe and grocery retail outlet closures alongside the U.S. West Coast due to the fact of the pandemic. The worthwhile halibut fishery is due to open up March 20 in B.C. and that capture is “almost entirely marketed to white tablecloth dining establishments from Vancouver to San Diego down the I-5 corridor,” said Christina Burridge, executive director of the B.C. Seafood Alliance. more, >click to read< 10:03
Crab, oyster exports to China down as coronavirus impacts trade – “My company is about 70% export,” said Ken Wiegardt of Wiegardt Brothers Inc., an oyster producer in Nahcotta that operates under the trade name Jolly Roger. The virus “has certainly taken a big chunk” out of his orders this year, he said. China is not accepting shipments of live food, including shellfish and crab. more, >click to read< 11:21
Coronavirus Breakthrough! Live lobster shipment from Nova Scotia to China resumes
For the first time in more than a month, live lobster from Nova Scotia has been flown to China, after fear of the coronavirus and travel restrictions caused market sales to plummet. Premier Stephen McNeil said just under 70 tonnes of live lobster were shipped from the Halifax Stanfield International Airport to China on Saturday, which is about two-thirds of a full flight. “We’re just hoping it’s the first of many,” McNeil told reporters at the legislature Tuesday. more, >click to read< 16:45
Coronavirus: Luncheon cancellation pinches New Bedford seafood industry
The International Seafood Buyers Luncheon, which for years has showcased the city’s fishing industry and seafood processing plants, has been cancelled due to concerns about the coronavirus. It is one of the first cancellations locally due to the infectious disease first identified in Wuhan, China at the end of last year which has since spread across the globe. The luncheon helps raise New Bedford’s profile to international buyers and media participating in the International Boston Seafood Show, according to One SouthCoast Chamber’s website. more, >click to read< 07:28
Coronavirus outbreak has Alaska fishing fleets on guard
“The protocols on cleaning and how to prevent a virus are already part of the procedures that we follow,” said Chad See, executive director of the Freezer Longline Coalition. “But the sense was that this is an issue we need to be on top of.”On the large vessels that catch and process seafood, dozens of crew members may be employed to work in remote areas of the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska. While at sea, the crews’ isolation shields them from a virus spreading on shore. But crew shifts bring new people on board, and could allow for the spread of the virus to a vessel. more >click to read< 12:04
Coronavirus: Snow crab fishery worries outbreak could be bad for business
Next to the lobster industry, snow crab is the biggest fishing industry in the province, as millions of dollars worth of New Brunswick snow crab is sold internationally. About 85 per cent of snow crab products are sold to U.S. markets, particularly casinos, restaurants, and all-you-can-eat buffets, popular in states like Florida, Georgia and Maryland. The New Brunswick delicacy is also popular on cruise ships.,, The industry won’t know what kind of impact the virus will have on the fishery until the season starts in April. more >click to read< 10:35
This is ugly. Coronavirus Makes Lobsters So Cheap That Sellers Face a Fatal Blow
U.S. lobster prices have plummeted to the lowest in at least four years after the spread of the virus halted charter flights to Asia at a time when sales usually boom for Chinese New Year celebrations. The fallout has left thousands of pounds of unsold lobster flooding North American markets and squeezing U.S. businesses that were already hurting from lost sales due to China’s tariffs from its trade war with Washington. >click to read< 08:18
Coronavirus: Crayfish ‘losses will compound financial hardship’ for fishers
Moves by the government to support the crayfish sector in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak may not be enough to stop some businesses going under,,, New Zealand fishers had already paid to catch those 400 tonnes at $50 a kilo, because the right to catch fish costs money, under a system known as ACE, or Annual Catch Entitlement. This is part of the quota management system. To alleviate those losses, after consultation with the industry the government yesterday announced it would allow fishing companies to carry forward 10 percent of the unused catch entitlements to next year.,, >click to read< 11:00
Coronavirus: Despite no shipments to China, Nova Scotia seafood business is thriving
“Our first thoughts are with the people in Asia and China and the rest of the world, Iran, Italy and other countries that are affected by the virus,” says Leo Muise, Executive Director of the Nova Scotia Seafood Alliance. Shipments to Asia have slowed almost to a halt since mid-January when the virus began to spread. “Geo-political events that happen all over this world have a great effect on this industry. Three years ago when the U.S. government and the Chinese government got into that trade war, and China put retaliatory tariffs on the U.S., that’s when our sales to China started to boom because we have a financial advantage there,” >click to read< 10:53
‘On pins and needles’ – NL fish harvesters, processors keeping an eye on China as coronavirus crisis continues
COVID-19, also commonly referred to as the coronavirus, is having a significant economic impact on China, a country whose importance continues to grow as a destination for seafood from this province. “Everybody’s on pins and needles,” Garnish-based harvester Alfred Fitzpatrick told SaltWire Network recently. The crab season along the province’s south coast usually opens up in early April, followed a couple weeks later by lobster. That’s not far off, and with talk in recent days of COVID-19 potentially becoming a pandemic, it looks as if the economic consequences will continue, as well. “Oh, my God, yes,” Fitzpatrick responded when asked if the COVID-19 crisis was inspiring conversation on the province’s wharves. “Like I said, everybody is worried. With the cost of everything going up and the new requirements and everything everybody got to do, I mean, it’s all money, and if you don’t make it, you can’t spend it, hey,” he said. >click to read< 17:40
Coronavirus: Seafood industry falls victim to the virus
Abalone fisheries, reliant on China for up to 90 per cent of sales, have been paralysed by the sudden drop in demand with Tasmania’s entire fleet of up to 100 abalone dive boats “ground to a halt” for the past month. Lobster was one of the first sectors to suffer as the result of China’s quarantine lockdowns, forcing the sale of export catches on the local market at discounted prices. The crisis has since broadened, affecting scale fisheries such as banded morwong and wrasse, and all processors reliant on China exports or live fish trade to deserted Chinatowns in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. >click to read< 09:16
Coronavirus: Flights of live lobster to China plummeted in late January. When will they resume?
“It’ll probably be three or four months at least,” Keith Colwell told reporters after announcing $2.5 million in funding for a lobster quality research and innovation centre at Université Sainte-Anne in Church Point, N.S. “It’s a concern for us. It’s a serious concern, not just with lobster, but everything we export there.” Initially, Colwell called it a blip.,, “I think this is a big deal, particularly the way they’ve dealt with it, like they’ve closed stuff down,” said Chandra Gavin, a commercial fisherman from the Gulf of St. Lawrence. “We went through SARS and I don’t think any of that, none of this happened for that.” Video, >click to read< 07:47
Lobster Quality Research and Innovation Centre To Help Fishery – >click to read<
Coronavirus: Reverberations from COVID-19 reach Canada’s East Coast and its lobster fishery
Lobster fishermen, like Fralick, are facing a crunch. In the last month, the coronavirus epidemic in China has precipitated a drop in lobster prices. “It dropped from $10.50 all the way down to $6, and now it’s back up to $7,” says Fralick. “That takes all the profit out of it.” Quarantines and lack of restaurant traffic has slowed lobster demand from China. Customer orders have dried up. As a result, fewer cargo planes are making the trip. >click to read< 07:54
Stranded lobsters and missing wedding dresses: The coronavirus is a daily reminder of China’s global reach
All along the western Australian coast, a backlog of rock lobsters are stuck waiting in their tanks, as their main market remains all but closed. In New Jersey, a boutique has been unable to fill all its wedding dress orders. A small business owner in London can’t source enough human hair extensions, wigs and weaves for its online sales. The deadly novel coronavirus that has devastated the Chinese economy is having a ripple effect across the globe. The food we eat, the work we do and the clothes we wear — many are daily reminders of the vital role China plays in the global economy. >click to read< 08:27
‘In shock’: Coronavirus sidelines Southeast Alaska dive fishermen
The coronavirus that emerged in late 2019 has infected more than 60,000 people, mostly in China. Though there haven’t been any confirmed cases in Alaska yet, some Alaskans, namely geoduck clam fishermen are feeling ripple effects from the epidemic.,, Though geoducks are native to the Western Hemisphere, Doherty said 95 percent of the catch gets sent across the Pacific. >click to read< 08:24
Coronavirus: Florida Keys Spiny Lobster Fishing Industry Hit Hard
Spiny lobster is Florida’s most valuable seafood. But the fishermen in the Keys were already having a lousy year. Then came the coronavirus. “The price crashed $4 in a day,” said George Niles, who fishes out of Stock Island. Bill Kelly from the Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen’s Association said the price went from about $10.50 a pound off the boat to $6. >click to read< 19:22
Coronavirus threatens California lobster industry
Roughly 95% of commercially caught lobster in California is shipped to China, where customers are willing to pay premium prices. “Traditionally, Chinese New Year is when we get the biggest price,” says lobster fisherman James Voss. “This year, that happened to coincide with the coronavirus and China stopping all wild animal imports into the country. So our price went from the highest it’s been all year to the lowest.” Photos, >click to read< 14:44
Treasurer of Australia Josh Frydenberg warns of ‘significant impact’ of coronavirus on economy
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has warned of a “significant impact on the Australian economy” from the coronavirus as seafood businesses fear they will have to close their doors. But the deadly disease is already hitting exports hard, in particular the seafood industry. Some business owners say they have lost around 95 per cent of their business as China stops buying live seafood like fish, crab and lobster. 7 minute Video, >click to read< 07:46
Ilwaco: Coronavirus disrupts Dungeness crab exports to China
The outbreak of a respiratory illness in China is impacting the commercial Dungeness crab fishery in the Pacific Northwest. The impact of the ban has been felt locally in the commercial crab fishery, where top dollar is fetched for live crab exported to the Chinese market, particularly during the month-long New Year celebration in January. ,,, Commercial crab fishermen, now about a month into a storm-riddled season, are earning less for their dangerous catch as a result of the coronavirus. photos, >click to read< 16:45
Coronavirus devastates Australian export businesses as economic costs of emergency filter through
Sonia Einersen from Cairns-based business Torres Straits Seafood in Far North Queensland said live imports into China had been cut, so she had nowhere to sell her product. “The coronavirus has really affected the whole fishing industry, we do lobster and live coral trout, it’s affected both of those as well as pretty much every other fishing industry in Australia,” she said. “Boats are tied up, they can’t go out, >click to read< 15:25
‘Lobsters overboard’ as China bans live seafood trade over coronavirus fears
Australia’s seafood industry has been thrown into crisis by the ban, with local fishermen considering a plan to return thousands of lobsters to the open waters. The export industry has ground to a halt in Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania as China usually imports about 90 to 95 per cent of locally-grown lobsters. >click to read< 16:47
Wuhan Huanan Seafood Market May Not Be Origin Of Coronavirus That Infected Over 20 Countries
When news of the mysterious coronavirus broke out, all fingers were pointing to Wuhan Huanan Seafood Market as the culprit. However, some studies are showing that the condemned market may not be the source of the virus. Instead, it’s possible that a person was infected outside of the market, but later brought the virus there. >click to read< 14:27
