Saving Seafood

Maine fishermen see warning signs in lobster surge

March 23, 2017 — After Maine’s lobster industry set sales records for a second straight year, area fishermen are enjoying the boom while the water is warm.

Literally.

Rising sea temperatures are benefiting Maine’s iconic crustacean, leading to an increase in population while other marine species, such as soft-shell crabs, have suffered a decline, according to fishermen who spoke at a March 16 Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association panel.

But the factors for today’s success may portend tomorrow’s economic and cultural disaster, according to some area fishermen.

“We’re going to start going down when it gets warmer,” Maine Lobstermen’s Association President Dave Cousens told the audience at the Frontier Cafe.

Cousens was joined by MCFA President Gerry Cushing, of Port Clyde; Chebeague Island fisherman Alex Todd, and lobsterman Steve Train of Long Island.

Between July and October 2016, Cousens said, the ocean temperature was 60 degrees where he fishes in South Thomaston – a rise of three degrees since he began hauling traps three decades ago.

If temperatures rise three more degrees, he said, “lobster larvae will not survive. That’s what we’re facing.”

Last year, Maine fishermen hauled a record $130 million pounds of lobster, and the industry saw its value rocket $30 million, according to the Department of Marine Resources.

But the panelists warned the boom will be temporary.

“You don’t have to look too far south to see what’s coming,” Cousens said, noting the sharp demise of lobster populations off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and Long Island, New York.

“That line’s just moving north,” Scott Moody, owner of Moody’s Seafood in Cundy’s Harbor, agreed the next day over the phone.

Moody, a fourth-generation lobsterman, fished in Harpswell for 30 years before starting his wholesale business, which includes five retail locations along Maine’s coast.

He buys directly from lobstermen and shellfish harvesters, and sells their product mostly to a distributor in Boston.

“In shellfish, we’ve seen a big turn,” Moody said last week. “I used to buy about $1 million in soft-shell (clams) in the Harpswell location,” at 337 Cundy’s Harbor Road.

“Since the climate change, I’m doing ($750,000) in hard-shell and only $250,000 in soft-shell,” he said.

Years ago, waiting to unload at his Boston distributor, “I’d be sitting behind five or six trucks of soft-shell clams,” he recalled. “They started to disappear. Then I’ve see guys bringing in hard-shell.”

He explained how warming waters increased the number of predators, such as Japanese green crabs, that can smash a clam’s soft shell.

Read the full story at The Forecaster

Lobster industry fears lost sales from ramped-up Canadian exports

March 20, 2017 — A new trade deal looming between Canada and the European Union is setting off alarm bells in the Maine lobster industry.

The deal between Canada and the EU – the largest seafood consumer market in the world – would eliminate tariffs on Canadian lobster exports into Europe and give the Maritimes a competitive advantage over their American counterparts, who would be stuck selling lobsters with tariffs ranging from 8 percent for a live lobster to 20 percent on processed or cooked lobster.

A weak Canadian dollar, which is now valued at about 75 percent of a U.S. dollar, will only make Canadian lobster that much more attractive to importers in the 28 member nations of the European Union, which is the second biggest importer of American lobsters, second only to Canada, according to trade data. In 2016, the EU imported $152 million worth of lobsters from the U.S., most of it from Maine.

“This is a big deal,” said Annie Tselikis, director of the Maine Lobster Dealers’ Association. “Canada recognizes that it is an export nation. They are putting their money where their mouth is and adopting a very aggressive trade policy. They are also developing a very aggressive, smart marketing campaign abroad. It is going to be very difficult to compete with that because we sell the same product.”

The Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, or CETA, has been under negotiation for years. The United States was negotiating one, too, called the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or TTIP, but it has stalled. The Canadian-EU deal appears likely to get its final OK in May, and the first phase of the deal, including the trade tariffs, would go into effect in June.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

Proposals Aim To Restore Lobsters To Long Island Sound

March 20, 2017 — A new interstate plan is being considered to try and halt the dramatic decline in lobster populations in Long Island Sound and southern New England waters, but experts warn none of these proposals may work in the face of global warming.

The draft plan by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission includes possible changes in the size of lobsters allowed to be kept, reductions in the number of lobster traps allowed in the region, and additional lobster season closures.

But a former president of the Connecticut Commercial Lobstermen’s Association, Nick Crismale of Branford, doubts the once-thriving lobster population in the Sound will ever recover. “It will never come back,” Crismale said. “The industry is basically gone; the resource is basically gone.”

Mark Alexander, head of Connecticut’s marine fisheries unit, acknowledges that bringing the lobsters back to the Sound won’t be easy in the face of ongoing climate change. “But we have to give it a shot,” he said this week.

Connecticut public hearings on the commission’s draft proposal are scheduled for March 21 in Old Lyme and March 27 in Derby.

Read the full story at the Hartford Courant

How Luke’s Lobster is Upending the World of Lobstering through a New Kind of Co-Op

March 15, 2017 — While many things can be said about the success of Luke Holden and his multi-million-dollar company, Luke’s Lobster, two things, in particular, stand out. Going into finance post-graduation isn’t the only key to making it big, and nothing is so good that it can’t be made better.

As is the case for many in the industry, Holden comes from a long line of fisherman and began his foray into the lobstering world as a kid. Following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, Holden spent his summers lobstering in the waters off Cape Elizabeth in Maine. During a stint as an investment banker in Manhattan in 2007, he realized that high-quality, affordable lobster rolls weren’t a thing in the city.

From that moment on, he made it his mission to change the lobster roll scene, and in 2009, the first Luke’s Lobster officially opened its doors in the East Village. With little-to-no business experience and a $15,000 loan from his father, Holden and his Craigslist-found business partner made Luke’s profitable within three weeks of being in business.

Read the full story at Paste Magazine

MASSACHUSETTS: Plan to Save Southern New England Lobsters up for May Vote

March 14, 2017 — A plan to try to preserve southern New England’s lobster fishery could come up for a vote in May.

The interstate Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission has been working on a plan to stave the decline of the lobster fishery in Connecticut, Rhode Island and southern Massachusetts. The population of lobsters has dwindled in those areas as waters have warmed, though they remain plentiful off of Maine and Canada.

The commission’s plan for the species includes potential strategies such as changing the legal harvesting size limit for lobsters, reducing the number of traps allowed in the water and enforcing new seasonal closures. The plan is scheduled to come up for a vote on May 8.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News

MAINE: Fishermen’s Forum provides a glimpse into an uncertain future

March 13, 2017 — Last Chance. Outnumbered. Endangered Species. These are the names of some of the lobster boats that were represented at this year’s Fishermen’s Forum in Rockport. They reflect the sense of uncertainty that surrounds the commercial fishing world.

The men and women who fish those boats were out in force to discuss catch, markets, bait, price, the health of the stock and fisheries management. The number of hours on the water represented by the fishermen assembled would be mind-boggling, if it could be calculated.

A unique gathering, the star attraction of the forum is the fishermen themselves. Weathered faces, barrel chests and brawny forearms filled the halls. On a desperately cold day, many fishermen were in T-shirts. And for those still standing after a grueling day of meetings, there was dinner and then story-telling that continued into the night.

The forum is not just for lobstermen. There are representatives from just about every Maine fishery: scallops, clams, worms, groundfish, elvers, halibut, seaweed. Seminars held over three days explored the issues facing each of those fisheries.

These men and women are the deans of fishing, willing to set aside this time to meet, think and talk about how to protect the species they fish, and to provide essential input based on their experience on the water. It is important to their future that some of the younger harvesters are showing up, too.

Read the full story at The Ellsworth American

Second midcoast man accused in lobster boat sinking is sentenced

March 8, 2017 — A St. George man was sentenced Thursday to two years in prison for sinking a competitor’s lobster boat last summer.

Vincent Hilt, 22, pleaded guilty during a hearing in Knox County Unified Court to felony charges of aggravated criminal mischief and felony theft.

Hilt is the second person convicted in the Sept. 1 sinking of the 36-foot lobster boat Oracle owned by Joshua Hupper of St. George. In January, Devlin Meklin, 21, of Warren admitted to the same charges as Hilt and was sentenced to two years with all but three months suspended.

The case against Hilt’s captain – Alan B. Norwood Jr., 47, of St. George – remains pending in court. Norwood has pleaded not guilty to aggravated criminal mischief for allegedly paying Hilt $500 to sink Hupper’s boat.

Hilt and Meklin both have been ordered by the court to pay restitution of $16,267 to Hupper for costs he incurred. Assistant District Attorney Jeffrey Baroody said that damages totaled more than $100,000, but insurance paid for much of that loss.

Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald

Maine Fishermen Set Lobster Record for Seventh Straight Year

March 6, 2017 — For the seventh year in a row, Maine lobstermen have set a record for the value of their lobster catch.

Maine lobsters were worth a little more than $533 million at the docks in 2016, exceeding the previous year’s record by more than $30 million, Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher said Friday.

Interest in American lobsters has skyrocketed in Asia, especially China, in recent years, aiding the value of the crustaceans, which remain popular with Americans on summer vacation and Europeans at Christmas.

At the same time, U.S. lobster fishermen have been catching more lobsters. Maine also set a record for volume in 2016, with state fishermen catching nearly 131 million pounds of lobster last year. That surpassed the previous record of nearly 128 million in 2013.

Conservative management of the lobster fishery has allowed the fishery to thrive in recent years, regulators said. Scientists have said warming oceans might also play a role, as the center of the lobster population appears to be moving north as waters warm. The catch off of Rhode Island and Connecticut has plummeted as Maine’s has soared.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at U.S. News

Maine wants help from lobstermen affected by coral rules

March 6, 2017 — Maine marine authorities are looking for input from lobstermen about how they might be impacted by federal regulations designed to protect corals off New England.

The regulatory New England Fishery Management Council is considering protecting corals in the Gulf of Maine. Two of the proposed protection areas are Outer Schoodic Ridge and the area southwest of Mount Desert Rock.

The state Department of Marine Resources says one of the proposed management options is a complete ban on fishing. The department has proposed exempting the lobster and crab fisheries in the two areas.

Read the full story from the Associated Press at the Southern Business Journal 

Maine’s 2016 Commercial Marine Resources Top $700 Million for the First Time

March 3, 2017 — The following was released by the Maine Department of Marine Resources:

Maine’s commercially harvested marine resources topped $700 million in overall value in 2016, according to preliminary data from the Maine Department of Marine Resources. The total reflects yet another all-time high and an increase of nearly $100 million in value over 2015.

“Mainers should take great pride in the success of our commercial fishing industry,” said Governor Paul R. LePage. “The hard working men and women who fish for a living along our coast have established Maine as a leader in the responsible management and harvest of seafood.”

For the second straight year, the largest single increase in value was in Maine’s lobster fishery. The fishery saw the overall landed value jump by more than $30 million while the average per pound value remained over $4 for the second year in a row, at $4.07.

The overall value of Maine’s lobster fishery was again by far the highest at $533,094,366. When factoring in bonuses paid to harvesters as reported by 14 of Maine’s 19 lobster co-ops, the overall landed value of Maine’s lobster fishery reached $547,249,010.

2016 marked the first year ever that Maine lobster harvesters landed over 130 million pounds, with a total of 130,844,773 pounds. It was also the fifth year in a row in which Maine lobster harvesters landed over 120 million pounds.

“The historic landings reflect the hard work of our harvesters to build and sustain this fishery,” said Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher. “The exceptional value is the result of growing demand by consumers who appreciate both the quality of Maine lobster and the long-standing commitment to sustainable harvesting practices that characterize this fishery.”

At $19,019,337 Atlantic herring, the primary bait source for Maine’s lobster industry, saw an increase in value over 2015 of more than $5 million. The dollar amount ranked it as Maine’s second most valuable fishery, despite a nearly 11 percent decline in landings. “Overall herring landings declined in 2016 as a result of a lack of fish off-shore, resulting in demand that far surpassed supply,” said Commissioner Keliher. 

Maine’s softshell clam industry dropped from second place in 2015 to third in 2016 with an overall value of $15,656,386. The decline in overall value reflected a 13.4 percent decline in per pound value as well as a 20 percent decline in pounds landed.

“One significant factor that contributed to the decline in softshell clam landings was a closure of harvest areas between the Canadian border and Mount Desert Island associated with Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning (ASP) late in the season,” said Kohl Kanwit, Director of the DMR Bureau of Public Health. While the closure was minimized as much as possible through rigorous testing, many areas were closed for 2 to 4 weeks to ensure public health and safety.   

Maine’s elver fishery was again by-far the most lucrative of Maine’s commercial fisheries on a per pound basis at $1,430.51 a pound. Maine harvesters netted 9,400 of the 9,688 available pounds of quota for an overall value of $13,446,828, an increase of more than $2 million from the previous year. The overall value ranked the elver fishery as Maine’s fourth highest.

“While we can take this moment to celebrate the great value of Maine’s marine resources, we cannot lose site of the signs of change,” said Commissioner Keliher. “The agency and the industry must work to not only safeguard our iconic lobster fishery but also to work together on solutions that ensure the health and resiliency of all Maine fisheries.”

More landings data can be found at http://www.maine.gov/dmr/commercial-fishing/.