January 28, 2024 — Coming up in February, Midcoast Mainers will see their favorite Maine shrimp on the market again—for a very short time.
Only seven fishermen were chosen out of 40 applicants to participate in a Winter Sampling Research Program for Northern shrimp and will be allowed to catch 58,000 pounds of Maine shrimp for the first time in more than a decade. Shrimpers will collect samples by either trawling and trapping in one of three regions of the Maine coast: Western Maine (Kittery to Phippsburg), Midcoast Maine (Phippsburg to Owls Head), or Eastern Maine (east of Owls Head).
In contrast, when the fishery was forced to close due to a stock collapse in 2013, more than 10 million pounds were caught. At that time, the average price per pound was $1.81.
This is driving up a supply and demand frenzy for Northern Maine shrimp, which has not been seen before in Maine.
All but one fisherman chosen to catch Maine shrimp are located in the Midcoast.
Two Midcoast markets, Delano Seafood Market in Waldoboro and Port Clyde Fresh Catch, have announced they will be selling shrimp on a temporary basis—and people are lining up out the door.