August 8, 2013 — The Canadian protests and court orders that marred last year's lobster season have been absent from the industry so far this year, but prices are still disappointing Maine lobstermen.
This lobster season has progressed more calmly than last year's, with soft-shell lobsters appearing more slowly, rather than all at once. That has allowed Maine's largest and most lucrative fishery to absorb the harvest over time, instead of having to handle it all at once, as happened last year. That glut led to a crash in lobster prices.
A year ago this week, a Canadian judge granted an injunction ordering protesters not to block entrances to lobster processing plants. Canadian lobstermen were protesting the delivery of Maine lobsters to Canadian processors by blocking access to the plants, saying they could not compete with the low prices of the imported Maine product.
This year, lobstermen say they aren't dreading the opening of the two-month Canadian lobster season Friday.
"It got dramatic last year way before the Canadian season even opened," said Matt McAleney, general manager of New Meadows Lobster. "There was a glut in the market that created a domino effect. It was unprecedented."
This year, he said, the opening of the Canadian season "is not really an issue. It's a blip we're not really worried about."
Read the full story at the Portsmouth Press Herald