Saving Seafood

North American lobster industry strong, but potential tariff issues loom

January 22, 2025 — The North American lobster industry is projected to have similar volumes and landing patterns as it has had in years past in 2025, but U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated mentions of 25 percent tariffs on Canadian products could cause disruptions.

The North American lobster supply has been relatively stable for a decade, averaging between 300 million and 350 million pounds each year. According to a panel of experts at the Global Seafood Market Conference, taking place 19 to 23 January in Palm Desert, California, U.S.A., totals in 2025 will largely remain the same, with the potential for a slight decline in catch totals in the U.S. state of Maine.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

NEW HAMPSHIRE: Ayotte says New Hampshire won’t comply with new lobster minimum size guidelines

January 22, 2025 — New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte said Tuesday that New Hampshire will not comply with new guidelines that she said would hurt the state’s lobster industry.

In a letter to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, Ayotte said New Hampshire will not adopt new guidelines that increase the minimum size for lobsters caught in the Gulf of Maine.

“Complying with these guidelines could lead to a loss of a third of lobstermen’s catch this year at a time when lobstermen are already facing declining yields,” Ayotte said in the letter. “Moreover, our lobster industry helps drive summer tourism, with visitors flocking from all over to visit New Hampshire’s historic lobster pounds.”

The guidelines would increase the minimum size for catchable lobsters over the next two year

Read the full article at WMUR

NH and Maine lobstermen push back against new size rule amid economic fears

January 15, 2025 — A new regulation on catchable lobster size could significantly reduce lobster hauls this summer, according to industry members, with local lawmakers expressing concerns about its impact on the Seacoast economy.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), which oversees certain species along the Atlantic coast, is implementing a change that will increase the minimum size for catchable lobsters in states including Maine and New Hampshire over the next two years.

The regulation involves an increase in the size of the gauge used by fishermen to measure lobster length to determine if they can be caught or must be released. The minimum gauge size will rise from 3.25 inches to 3.375 inches by July 1, 2025, as stated by the ASMFC. This size will further increase to 3.5 inches by July 1, 2027.

Read the full article at Seacoastonline

MAINE: Marine Resources Commissioner pulls proposed regulation to increase the legal lobster size

January 14, 2025 — The head of the Maine Department of Marine Resources said the agency is dropping a controversial proposal to increase the minimum size for lobster.

Commissioner Pat Keliher announced the change Thursday night during a heated public meeting with lobstermen in Augusta. Federal fisheries regulators approved the minimum size increase in response to studies showing sharp declines in young lobster in the Gulf of Maine. But lobstermen have questioned that data and predicted the change will benefit Canadian lobstermen.

Rep. Billy Bob Faulkingham, a lobsterman from Winter Harbor, said DMR’s shift is quote “great news.”

“Lobstermen turned out by the hundreds to oppose this. We were going to get devastated by Canada taking our lobsters if we had implemented this without an agreement with them. So it’s good to put a pause on this rule and keep our market in tact,” Faulkingham said.

Read the full article at Maine Public

MAINE: Maine officials say noncompliance with regional lobster size standards could limit exports

January 14, 2025 — Maine lobstermen are “off the hook” when it comes to new catch size restrictions.

The decision to shelf the new restriction came after a tense meeting with Maine lobstermen where a state leader swore at a man in the audience.

“It’s uncharted waters,” New England Fisherman’s Stewardship Association COO Dustin Delano said.

It’s a decision that will affect all Maine lobsterman.

The argument about Maine’s minimum lobster size got choppy at Thursday night’s Department of Marine Resources public hearing,

DMR Commissioner Patrick Keliher got into a heated exchange with fishermen about changing minimum lobster gauge limitations.

Read the full article at WGME

Plan for stricter lobster fishing rules scrapped amid strong opposition from lobstermen

January 13, 2024 — Fishing regulators on Friday scrapped a plan for stricter fishing rules amid concerns about a decline in baby lobsters in the warming waters off New England.

The regulators were looking to institute a new rule that fishermen need to abide by a larger minimum size for the lobsters they trap. The change is only 1/16th of an inch or 1.6 millimeters, but regulators have said it will help preserve the population of the valuable crustaceans, as many small lobsters will need to be tossed back to the ocean.

Some fishermen have argued the change is unnecessary and will be disruptive to one of the country’s most lucrative seafood industries when it is already stressed by warming waters, surging expenses and new rules to protect whales. They’ve argued for the new rules to be delayed or tossed out.

Read the full article at the Associated Press 

MASSACHSUETTS: Lobster group hopes state follows Maine, scraps stricter fishing rules

January 13, 2025 — Maine fishing regulators on Friday scrapped a plan for stricter fishing rules amid concerns about a decline in baby lobsters in the warming waters off New England, and a group representing Massachusetts lobstermen hopes this state follows suit.

The regulators were looking to institute a new federal rule, Addendum 27, that fishermen need to abide by a larger minimum size for the lobsters they trap. The change is only 1/16th of an inch or 1.6 millimeters, but regulators have said it will help preserve the population of the valuable crustaceans, as many small lobsters will need to be tossed back to the ocean.

Read the full article at the Gloucester Daily Times

MAINE: State of Maine sides with lobstermen, decides to pull minimum lobster size rule

January 10, 2025 — The Maine Department of Marine Resources has decided to pull a regulation that would have increased the minimum allowable catch size for lobsters amid strong opposition from members of the state’s lobster industry.

Dozens of lobstermen voiced their concerns during a public hearing about the proposed rule change, which would have increased the minimum catch size from 3 1/4 inches to 3 5/16 inches. The lobstermen argued the change of a sixteenth of an inch may seem small, but they feared it would have resulted in significant financial losses for their businesses.

In a statement, DMR Commissioner Patrick Keliher said he decided to pull the regulation with the approval of Gov. Janet Mills following Thursday night’s hearing after lobstermen made it “loud and clear” they were unified in their opposition to the rule change.

Read the full article at WMTW

MAINE: Maine lobstermen to voice concerns over new size regulations at public hearing

January 9, 2025 — A public hearing will be held on Thursday in Augusta about new regulations for lobstermen that would increase the minimum lobster size they can harvest.

The lobster industry is an economic driver in the state and some Maine lobstermen worry the industry will sink with new regulations that would change the minimum size of a lobster harvested by fractions of an inch, from 3 and 1/4 inches to 3 and 5/16 inches.

The rule is set to go into effect on July 1.

Read the full article at WGME

 

Maine Lobstermen Lawsuit Over Boat Monitoring Tossed

November 26, 2024 — A federal judge is throwing out a lawsuit from Maine lobstermen over a rule that went into effect more than a year ago.

The rule requires lobstermen with federal fishing permits to put monitors on their boats, which tracks their location on the water.

Five lobstermen had argued that the monitors violate their constitutional rights to privacy, equal protection and due process.

Read the full article at WGAN