Tag Archives: lobster
Lobster Market Outlook, Industry Size, Growth Factors, Investment Opportunity 2024-2032
IMARC Group, a leading market research company, has recently released a report titled “Lobster Market Report by Species (American Lobster, Spiny Lobster, Rock Lobster, European Lobster), Weight (0.5 – 0.75 lbs, 0.76 – 3.0 lbs, Over 3 lbs), Product Type (Whole Lobster, Lobster Tail, Lobster Meat, Lobster Claw), Distribution Channel (Food Service, Retail), and Region 2024-2032.”The study provides a detailed analysis of the industry, including the global lobster market share, size, trends, and growth forecasts. The report also includes competitor and regional analysis and highlights the latest advancements in the market. How Big is the Lobster Market? more, >>click to read<< 10:36
Lobster demand remains high during the holidays
Back in the 1960’s, Dartmouth resident Bruce Nickerson was a lobster fisherman. “We got 50 cents a pound,” says Nickerson, who adds, when the price jumped to 90 cents per pound, it was big news back in the day. “I thought that was great.” Those prices are ancient history. “Anything under two pounds (are) $13.25 a pound,” says Samantha Strachan, who works at The Lobster Dive store in Eastern Passage, N.S. “Two pounds and up are $15.25 a pound. Anything under two pounds (are) $13.25 a pound,” says Samantha Strachan, who works at The Lobster Dive store in Eastern Passage, N.S. “Two pounds and up are $15.25 a pound.” Video, more, >>click to read<< 12:32
Lobster prices rise as catches fall: ‘They’re all fighting for that product’
The price of lobster is up compared to last year, says the Lobster Fishers of P.E.I. Marketing Board. Live lobster is selling for as much as $11.50 a pound, said Charlie McGeoghegan, chair of the board, up from $6.50 to $7.50 last year. The jump in price is partly because catches are down now for fishers in New England, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, he said. Catches in New England specifically are down about 16 per cent over the five-year average, he said. photos, more, >>click to read<< 06:48
Some N.S. lobster fishers report serious decline in catches
Some lobster fishers are reporting a major drop in catches this year compared to last, and they’re calling on the provincial government to drastically increase illegal fishing fines to keep the lobster population stable. Heather Mulock, executive director of Coldwater Lobster Association (opens in a new tab), said this season is one of the worst for catches in the region since the 1990s, and she attributes some of that to illegal fishing. “We saw millions of pounds of lobster that came out illegally,” she said. “Unauthorized fishing in the summer and fall affected us.” “We’re in the process of a regulatory review that will include updates to the Nova Scotia Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act(opens in a new tab),” he said. “Provincial fines for offences under the Act are part of this review.” more, >>click to read<< 14:21
Drop in catches when the area 34 lobster fishery opens
The lobster fishing season in Area 34 started a week later than planned due to bad weather. Although the sea has calmed down, the catches are not there according to fishermen from Pubnico and Methegan. Fishing is down, it’s not as good as other years, notes Graham Deon, captain of the boat Samanta Dawn, who has been fishing for 43 years. We expect 25 to 50% fewer catches, all districts are down. Aldric d’Entremont is captain of the lobster boat Miss Marley. Same observation from Aldric D’Entremont who also got into lobster fishing more than 40 years ago. more, >>click to read<< 11:28
Safety paramount for lobster season opening in southwestern N.S.
Opening day protocol for the two lobster fishing districts dictates that any winds above 26 knots will delay the scheduled season start of the lobster fishery. Last season, LFA 33 opened after a one-day delay, while dumping day in the LFA 34 opening was delayed by a week. “The decision on whether to advance or delay the opening date considers weather forecasts provided by Environment Canada and advice from the LFA advisory committees,” says Sankey. Opening day protocol for the two lobster fishing districts dictates that any winds above 26 knots will delay the scheduled season start of the lobster fishery. Last season, LFA 33 opened after a one-day delay, while dumping day in the LFA 34 opening was delayed by a week. Photo’s, >>click to read<< 12:27
Authorities crack down on commercial lobster fishery inside Halifax harbour
Lobster fishing inside Halifax harbour will be sharply restricted when the season opens next week as federal authorities move to enforce existing prohibitions. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans will not allow traps to be set within 300 metres of any wharf, pier or boat structure inside the harbour. The restriction was included in DFO lobster fishing licence conditions for the first time this year at the request of the Halifax Port Authority, which has the same rule on the books. That’s bad news for Craig Hartlen, a lobster fisherman based in Eastern Passage, a small port on the outer edge of the harbour. >>click to read<< 08:11
N.S. lobster facility temporarily halts processing, blames lower catches
The Montreal-based owners of Riverside Lobster International at Meteghan, N.S., say the plant will not process lobster this fall and winter, citing lower catches in Maine and the Maritime provinces. “It’s an unfortunate situation, but right now that’s about all that we know. We’re not running this fall and there’s been no decision yet in terms of what’s going to happen for the spring,” “We’re seeing lower landings and not necessarily just in this area. We’re seeing it from Maine to New Brunswick to Nova Scotia. It’s affecting processing facilities and not just not just Riverside.” >>click to read<< 11:25
Lawsuit challenges new limits on offshore lobster traps
A New Hampshire lobster boat and a lobstermen’s association have filed a federal lawsuit to stop changes that would decrease the number of traps that can be used. The changes are for Area 3, which is about 30 miles offshore and runs up to the Canadian border down to the Carolinas. “That’s what this is supposed to be about, conservation of the resource,” Arthur “Sooky” Sawyer, president of the Massachusetts Lobstermen’s Association, said. Video, >>click to read<< 07:02
Changing to batten lobster pots found to improve catch efficiency, meaning less days at sea
South Australia’s southern rock lobster fishers have not been using the best pots, according to the results of a five-year study testing different designs, with the West Australian batten pot coming out on top. When directly compared to the beehive pot, which is legislated for use in South Australia, batten pots improved catch efficiency rates by 38 per cent. Some fishers in SA’s northern zone have already decided to switch to batten pots. Emily Rowe is the shore manager for a lobster fishing 
business based in Port Lincoln who took part in the trial and then decided to make the permanent switch to batten pots this year. South Australian Northern Zone Rock Lobster Association executive officer Kyri Toumazos said it would not be long before most professional fishers made the switch. Photos>>click to read<< 13:54
Delano: Biden administration won’t leave lobstermen alone
Lawmakers and a federal appeals court last year defeated a federal plan to save endangered whales by eradicating New England’s lobster industry. With those plans undone, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is crafting a workaround scheme to regulate lobstermen out of the fishery. Recent years have been brutal going for lobstermen, such that the survival of our trade is highly uncertain. Lobstermen are at once negotiating higher fuel costs, higher bait costs, higher shipping costs, and an agitation campaign from dark money nonprofits trained on major buyers of Maine lobster products. NOAA’s new regulatory plan is poised to decimate our inventory. >>click to read<< 09:18
Biden admin’s new rule could put pinch on lobster fishermen while letting others off the hook: critics say
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is planning to enact a new federal rule under the Marine Mammal Protection Act – which would expand an existing restricted area off the coast of Maine where lobster fishing is already banned for three months each year. The move would cut the lobstermen’s’ business by at least 25% of the already declining industry, critics say. The plans come as an attempt to protect the endangered North Atlantic Right Whale, but a group of fishermen say the agency have no data to support the tightening restrictions. They also claim the federal agency is playing favorites by greenlighting offshore wind developments even though recent studies show can be harmful to marine life. “The federal government treats foreign offshore wind developers much better than lobstermen. The corporations have official authorization to disturb and displace marine life. Working lobstermen aren’t as lucky as our friends,” Video, >>click to read<< 07:55
Lobster dealers hope for a fall surge
This year, boat prices are high, but the catch is down, dealers say. Supply is meeting demand, but the demand is lower than last year. While at least one local seafood retailer had a great summer, wholesale dealers’ reports are unenthusiastic. Both lobstermen and dealers are keeping fingers crossed for a big fall surge in catch. With the state’s commercial fishery granted a six-year reprieve in December from new federal regulations that many industry voices said would decimate the fishery, the 2023 season has focused on traditional concerns, such as supply, demand, prices and bait. “The price is up but the catch is down, and we’ve had horrible weather,” said Susan Soper, general manager of Winter Harbor Lobster Co-op. “Our retail sales were almost 60 percent down.”>>click to read<< 13:03
Staff at Irish Aquarium Baffled as Rare Albino Lobster Turns Blue!
The rare albino lobster has been living at the community-run Achill Experience Aquarium in Co Mayo since he was discovered off the nearby coast six years ago and has become a huge attraction for tourists. He is affectionately called Charlie after the fisherman Charlie O’Malley who caught him off the Achill coast in 2017. It is estimated that only one in 100 million lobsters are white or albino. “Every time he moults (changes shell) in order to grow, which is every 12 to 14 months, we see the blue colour which is gradually getting stronger. >>click to read<< 07:34<<
Decline in young lobsters triggers change in legal catch size
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commissioner approved in May new management measures when the survey of sublegal lobsters declined by 35 percent. The most recent stock survey shows a 39 percent decline. “The fact that we’ve hit the trigger this soon comes as a significant surprise,” DMR Commissioner Patrick Keliher said. “When the Board voted on the Addendum in May, it was anticipated that the trigger would not be hit for a year or two.” Keliher had initially broached to the ASMFC a higher trigger of 38 percent than the 35 percent that passed. But at the latest board meeting, he successfully delayed implementing the first size change from June 1, 2024, as initially set in the Addendum, to Jan. 1, 2025. >>click to read<< 08:08
Maine State Chamber of Commerce puts spotlight on lobster
Maine lobster contributes $1.4 billion to the state economy and 4,000 jobs on the shore, from live lobster dealers to processors to workers on the piers. And those numbers don’t include lobster-based tourism, Linda Caprara, interim CEO of the Maine State Chamber of Commerce, noted Sept. 28 in an online panel discussion in honor of Maine Lobster Week. Then, there are the 5,000 licensed lobstermen and their crew who all earn their livelihood on the water. Last year, just below 100 million pounds of lobster landed on docks from Portland to Lubec with a value of about $390 million. “We’re catching a lot of lobster,” said Marianne LaCroix, executive director of the Maine Lobster Marketing Collaborative. >>click to read<< 08:51
Judge declaws key part of Massachusetts lobstermen’s libel lawsuit against California aquarium
A federal judge in Louisiana ruled this week there’s no rational reason for Massachusetts lobstermen to sue a California aquarium for libel in Louisiana, which has a law against disparaging seafood, and so ordered the case moved to California, where you’re free to say what you want about harvested sea creatures. Aa group of lobstermen from Gloucester, Marion, North Truro and Plymouth had sued the Monterey Bay Aquarium earlier this year for a press release in which the aquarium said the way lobsters are caught off New England endangers the increasingly rare Atlantic right whale and urged companies and consumers to consider other briny alternatives. >>click to read<< 09:28
At Mackerel Cove wharf, Arizona-based lobster chain learns as it grows
There, an upstart fast food company called Angie’s Lobster offers rolls filled with a quarter-pound of New England’s favorite crustacean that’s served warm and buttered, chilled, grilled or fried. Add in a drink, fries and their trademark sauce and the total comes to — wait for it — $9.99. Is there a catch? Yep, in more ways than one. It all begins with Harpswell lobster boats and a historic wharf nestled into Mackerel Cove on Bailey Island. In the summer of 2022, Angie’s bought a long-standing family lobster pound there and established the first link in a supply chain that is bringing Vacationland lobster to Arizona drive-thru diners at eye-poppingly low prices. Tony Christofellis, who founded the company and named it for his late mother, says business is good and getting better. He says buying the Bailey Island wharf was “the coolest thing we’ve ever done.” Photos, >>click to read<< 08:10
RUBENSTEIN: The endless Maritime lobster war
Nova Scotia has a series of historic treaties with the Mi’kmaq dating back to the 1720s, 150 years before any of the numbered treaties in the rest of Canada. These agreements are known as the Peace and Friendship Treaties and were designed to reduce warfare and to regulate trade between the indigenous and settler populations. While these treaties contained few monetary and no land transfer provisions, they guaranteed hunting, fishing and land-use rights for the descendants of the indigenous signatories. These Peace and Friendship Treaties remain in effect today but were regularly but improperly denied or ignored by the Crown during much of Nova Scotia’s past. Today, those ignoring the treaties and court rulings stemming from them are the Mi’kmaq themselves. >>click to read<< 10:27
His passion is lobstering, his worry is the future
Christopher Robert Tobey Jr. was born on July 22, 1991, in Portland, into a family of fishermen. He spent a lot of time on the docks and water. He watched his father and grandfather talk with other fishermen and learned the lingo. He also learned a lot by going to other docks because everyone does things differently. “As a little kid, I always knew who everyone was and what their boat was,” he said. Tobey’s father always told him fishing wasn’t easy, but it was there if he wanted it. “I started lobster fishing because my father was a lobster fisherman, and when I was a kid that’s all I wanted to do,” he said. However, fishing is dangerous. And on May 11, 2008, Tobey’s life changed forever. “It was Mother’s Day, a Sunday, and we went out to go fishing to fill some orders for a couple of my dad’s friends,” Tobey said. “I remember it was me, my father and another fisherman, Robbie Blackburn. He was working for my dad. We went out and it was a great day and the weather started to turn.” >>click to read<< 09:53
Portland Lobster Co. buys lobster pound on Bailey Island in Casco Bay
“With the purchase of our own lobster pound in the pristine environment surrounding Bailey Island, we can ensure that our lobsters are sourced directly from the productive and healthy waters of Casco Bay,” said Ethan Morgan, who owns the Portland Lobster Co. and has bought the Bailey Island Lobster Pier for an undisclosed price. “This acquisition allows us to establish a close partnership with local fishermen, supporting them while having a direct line to their daily catches.” Morgan said the deal was a strategic move to designed to receive, house and transport lobsters for his restaurant, Portland Lobster Co., eliminating the need for the lobsters to sit in tanks for weeks at a time. >click to read< 13:06
Bundoran fisherman sees double as rare Orange lobster pays second visit
You can do the numbers on finding an orange lobster that has not already been served on a platter, so to have discovered two last year, after a lifetime of fishing off Donegal shores, was a bit of a coup for Bundoran based fisherman, Sean Carty, when out checking his pots this week. While checking his pots as per usual earlier this week, what appeared to be another orange lobster emerged from the ocean, but there was more to this ’tail’ than met the eye. However, he had to do a ‘double take’ when he realised that he had clashed claws with this same lobster before. >click to read< 12:20
Lobstermen pinched as inflation, new regulations cause cost of delicacy to rise
Dwight Staples, who has worked as a lobsterman in Stonington, Maine, for 15 years, said modern-day lobster fishing can be complex, and this season is producing additional challenges. “Lobsters seem to be migrating more east, and therefore our catch is going down,” Staples said. On top of the smaller catches, he said the price of bait has risen from $30 per tray to around $100 per tray, and fuel is three times more expensive than what it used to cost. From the fisherman, then to a processor, and finally to the grocery store or restaurant, with every hand that touches a lobster, the price goes up. Video, >click to read< 07:42
Arizona Is Home To America’s First Drive-Thru Lobster Chain
If you had to list places where you would expect to find inexpensive seafood, you’d probably think of areas near the sea. Cities along the Gulf Coast are notorious for shrimp and fish dishes and, of course, New England is known for clam chowder and lobster. Given this knowledge, it might shock you to learn that the first American drive-through restaurant specializing in lobster is not located anywhere along the East Coast, but rather in one of the driest parts of the country: Tempe, Arizona. According to ABC, the owners of Angie’s Lobster, Tony and Roushan Christofellis, say they keep prices down by “buying in bulk.” While the meat being served through the drive-through is in fact sourced from Maine and eastern Canada, much of it comes from lobster which is “visually unappealing,” meaning it may have cracked shells or missing claws, making it cheaper but equally tasty to the lobster available in grocery stores or restaurants. >click to read< 11:27
Abbott’s Harbour wharf blocked off without notice to fishermen
For Pubnico-area lobster fisherman Jaron d’Entremont, the Abbott’s Harbour wharf has been his home port since he began his fishing career six years ago. “One day I was there checking my boat and I saw inspectors there looking around checking underneath the wharf. A month later without any notice they put the blocks there and deemed it unsafe, “Fishermen are permitted to walk down on the Yarmouth County wharf to check their vessels, said d’Entremont, but vehicular traffic is prohibited. Diggdon noted the Abbott’s Harbour wharf is under DFO’s Small Craft Harbour program and is classified as a core fishing harbour meaning “it is deemed critical to the commercial fishing industry.” >click to read< 12:28
Fisherman’s friend: Blue lobster caught for second time is released into the sea
What do you call a once in a lifetime experience when it happens for a second time? Perhaps Bangor fisherman Stuart Brown is the man to ask. Catching an extremely rare blue lobster is said to be a one in two million chance. Doing it again just a few months later and the odds soar. Same lobster, same boat, same location off the Belfast coastline. The second catch, from the waters close to Blackhead Lighthouse on the northern shores of Belfast Lough, was even more unlikely because lobsters do not usually remain in the same area. Photos, >click to read< 10:18
Watching my brother-in-law build his lobster traps by hand taught me the value of old ways
As a kid, I remember lying across the seat of a white rowboat in the hot sun during my summer holidays. In 2006, what seemed like a lifetime later, I was having one of my first quick chats with my future brother-in-law, on the weekend that he and my sister Kathy were getting married. Michael Sullivan is a lobster fisherman. Wearing his preferred black ball cap and sporting a chevron mustache, he catches enough lobster and fish to make a living. He told me about his greatest heartache, that the lobster fishery is a disaster, with catches getting smaller and smaller. But two daughters and 11 years later, things had taken a surprising turn. Michael had been upping his catch, substantially, every year. He had gone back to the “old ways” — building his own wooden traps. Photos, >click to read< 09:01
‘Today’ fans mock Martha Stewart over ‘squeamish’ cooking segment: ‘How not to open a lobster’
The stage was set for a brief segment where Stewart’s cooking skills were supposed to impress. Instead, a spell of messiness took over as Martha demonstrated how to break the lobster. ‘Today’ host Hoda Kob, Al Roker, Sheinelle Jones, and Willie Geist joined Martha in her pursuit to prepare a lobster linguine. However, fans who were watching the segment were disgusted by the sight of Stewart pulling out the lobster’s entrails. Hoda and Willie were listening intently but looked confused with the instructions. But it was Al who spoke up and asked Martha, “What’s that stuff inside?” Fans of the show were not entirely happy with Stewart for messing up the lobster dish on ‘Today’. One fan wrote, “Is anyone watching the TODAY show segment of “How NOT to open a lobster” with Martha Stewart? What a shit show!” >click to read< 08:15
Poor weather cuts Cape Breton spring lobster fishers’ catch
Combined with cooler temperatures, harvesters around Cape Breton said this year wasn’t as good as the past two — which were stronger than usual. “It definitely wasn’t a banner year,” said Ingonish harvester Michael Barron. Also the president of the Cape Breton Fish Harvesters Association, Barron said the season was “on par” with the average season for most fishers, rather than a bad one altogether. However, Barron said the average catch in the association’s area, Cape Breton’s east coast from Bay St. Lawrence to Gabarus, was down between 15 and 20 per cent this year. This season, lobster prices remained similar across most of Cape Breton. They didn’t see many fluctuations either. >click to read< 09:05
DFO says it has enough resources to monitor Indigenous lobster fishing in Nova Scotia
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) says its enforcement branch will be on the water and adequately equipped to monitor compliance of First Nations lobster fisheries this summer. The pledge follows the chaotic fishery for baby eels this spring where there was widespread illegal activity by some Indigenous and non-Indigenous harvesters. DFO shut down the legal elver fishery, affecting both commercial licence holders and Indigenous groups with fishing plans approved by the department. But “poaching”, as federal Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray called it, continued. “I want to clarify they are two very different fisheries,” Maritimes region director of conservation and protection Tim Kerr told reporters Monday in a briefing on Indigenous rights-based lobster fisheries. >click to read< 08:35
