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In This Edition
A team of eight members from the Maine Lobster Pound Association, Maine Import/Export Lobster Dealers Association,
and the Lobster Institute conducted a study to determine the feasibility of establishing a cold seawater holding
facility for lobsters that are shipped to Japan and other Pacific Rim nations. A relay pound could help reduce
lobster mortality, which may be as high as 5% to 40% at certain times of the year.
The study led the team to contacts in Anchorage, Alaska; Seattle, Washington; Los Angeles, California; and
Honolulu and Kona in Hawaii. It concluded with a trip to Hawaii where the team met with five interested companies
and two government agencies. Data gathered in the study suggests that the Hawaiian Islands should be seriously
considered as a potential relay pound site.
The team focused on six major areas in the study: physiological requirements of the American lobster and the
Hawaiian Island environment; Hawaiian policy and regulatory climate; distant market analysis; freight
transportation options; trading companies and market consortia; and new holding and shipping technology.
This article will highlight a few of the conclusions.
According to the study team, market development and expansion will be the most difficult aspect of any business
venture at this point. Although the team agrees that there is great potential for expanding markets in Japan,
Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Thailand, it will also be difficult, costly, and time consuming. Experienced
and reliable trading companies and traders with foreign national roots, personnel, and contacts will be a
necessity to conduct successful and profitable business in these countries. It is also essential to promote the
product through trade shows, written materials on product care and preparation, and advertising. The team
concluded that in order to properly develop these markets - share the risk, raise capital, and aggressively promote
the product - cooperation and coordination of several companies is required.
The study team discovered that the freight options from mainland U.S. to the Hawaiian Islands (through airports
in Honolulu, Hilo, Kona and on Maui) and from the islands to distant Pacific Rim markets are without equal.
Honolulu International Airport is a major air transportation hub betwen the mainland and the Pacific Rim Basin and
offers more air freight options than any of the island airports. Most distant Pacific Rim markets can be reached
within 8 to 16 hours from Honolulu, significantly reducing potential mortality rates.
The team estimates that with a guaranteed mortality rate of 2% or less, an additional $1.50 per pound would be
added to the product at final destination. The cost of additional handling and packaging through a relay pound at
Honolulu is estimated (versus straight through from Boston) at $.75 per pound. They point out that both of these
figures are estimates and could move up or down depending on market conditions.
Some new business activity has already resulted from the study. One Maine corporation has established a base in
Maui, a new corporation, Maine Lobster Exporters, Inc., has formed involving 12 existing Maine Corporations, and
The Great Maine Lobster Company of Hawaii was created by combining an enterprise from Maine and one from Hawaii.
Other collaborative efforts have led to visits to trade shows and trips to four Asian countries in April alone.
These emerging companies represent a new and aggressive attitude among the lobster marketing sector. Relay pound
technology, whether it is on the west coast of mainland U.S., Hawaii, or in Europe, has introduced innovative
energy, capital, and thinking into global marketing and product quality. Other new holding and shipping systems
technologies are sure to follow.
An Educational/Apprentice Program for New Fishermen Considered
"A training/apprentice program will not guarantee the success of new entrants to the lobster fishery, or even give
them the skills or knowledge required to survive in the industry, but it should discourage anyone not serious
about entry into the fishery from completing the requirements." This is one of the conclusions of the committee
set up by the Department of Marine Resources (DMR) Lobster Advisory Council to investigate the feasibility of a
mandatory educational/training program and to offer suggestions on implementing it.
The group, made up of Tom Duym of the Marine Trades Center at Washington County Technical College, Bob Goode of
Southern Maine Technical College, Glen Salvadore of DMR's Fisheries Technology Service, and David Dow of the
Lobster Institute, attempted to come up with a program that was simple, practical, and achievable but one which
would require new entrants to have significantly more knowledge of the fishery and a greater committment to obtain
a commercial lobster license.
The committee recommended that the educational/training program should contain two options: the sternman
apprentice program and a lobster license certification training course.
The sternman apprentice program would require anyone licensed as a sternman or working on a vessel licensed for a
sternman to show proof, certified by three licensed lobstermen, of having worked one hundred paid days or more
with a licensed Maine lobsterman. When this condition has been met, the applicant is qualified to sit for the
exam. Short courses would be offered each winter to help prepare for the exam.
The second option, a lobster license certification training course, would be patterned after the Hunter Safety
Program of the Maine State Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. The group suggested that the training
program be offered at five or six coastal sites and be coordinated by the technical college system. The course
would consist of six program areas which include: safety and survival; navigation rules and boat handling; biology
and conservation practices; laws and regulations; fishing ethics and techniques; and marketing and product
quality.
The training certification program would require about 48 to 50 hours to complete and would be flexible to meet
individual needs and time constraints. At the end of the course, the instructor would certify that the applicant
had participated in all aspects of the program and then he/she would be eligible for the comprehensive exam.
There would also be an oral or video option for those applicants who might have a reading difficulty.
As Bill Anderson of the Lobster Advisory Council points out, "The reason we're interested in this kind of program
is that if Maine doesn't do something, the federal government (Coast Guard) will. And we'd prefer to have control
over it ourselves."
Lobster Cut-Out Translated for World Market
In the summer of 1989, the Lobster Institute produced a bright red brochure cut into the shape of a lobster with
information about the nutritional value of lobsters as well as how to cook and eat them. During the past year,
over 20,000 of these brochures have been distributed throughout New England. Now, the brochure is being translated
into French, German, Japanese, and Chinese so we can share this fascinating information with lobster lovers
worldwide.
The Institute is also in the process of reprinting a green lobster cut-out which will have other interesting facts
about lobsters.
Shell Disease Survey Produces Preliminary Results
Rod Getchell, marine scientist at Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR), developed a questionnaire to find
out how Maine's lobster holding facilities are affected by shell disease. Supported by DMR's Lobster Seed Fund,
the survey was sent out in January to 45 members of the Maine Lobster Pound Association and 125 lobster dealers.
As of March 6th, 31 poundkeepers and 34 lobster dealers had responded.
Preliminary results show that:
* 21% of dealers find shell disease in 1% to 5% of their lobsters when first purchased while 10% of poundowners
find the disease in 1% to 5% of their lobsters when first purchased and stored.
* 18% of dealers discover shell disease after a period of storage; 35% of poundowners discover shell disease after
long-term storage.
* Dealers affected by shell disease purchase an average of 24% of their lobsters from Canada. Poundowners affected
by shell disease purchase an average of 25% of their lobsters from Canada.
* Shell disease is most prevalent in winter, spring follows, and then summer.
* Dealers say lesions start to appear 3 to 4 weeks after storage. 50% of poundowners observe lesions after 4
months of storage.
* Poundowners find that most lesions occur on the upper surfaces of claws; dealers find that lesions occur most
often on the upper surfaces of the body.
* 78% of affected dealers and 75% of affected poundowners cull out infected lobsters prior to storage. In both
groups, those that didn't cull out infected lobsters didn't observe lesions initially.
* Most poundowners, as well as most dealers, cull at the stage where lesions are minor or moderate. Both groups
also check each lobster before storage.
* 67% of dealers affected by shell disease also recheck shell quality during storage. 75% of affected poundowners
recheck shell quality sometime during storage.
* 78% of dealers remove mortalities daily; 32% of poundowners remove mortalities daily while 35% pull out dead
lobsters only at harvest time.
* Most dealers discard mortalities in refuse containers. Two affected dealers reported dumping morts in waters
nearby.
* Most poundkeepers discard their mortalities in refuse containers. Two piled their morts on the shore.
* 83% of affected poundkeepers drag their lobsters as a harvest method while 31% of poundkeepers not affected by
shell disease drag them.
In addition to the above responses, 24 questions were asked covering practical measures that can be used to
prevent or control shell disease. A list of recommended control measures that are currently being practiced
include the following:
1. Source: purchase from non-infected areas.
2. Inspection: examine each lobster prior to storage.
3. Density: limit overcrowding.
4. Hygiene: remove mortalities and old shells promptly.
5. Husbandry: provide adequate feed.
6. Harvest: avoid damage by harmful gear.
7. Monitor: recheck quality of exoskeletons periodically.
8. Environment: avoid rapid changes in salinity, temperature, and oxygen levels.
A final report summarizing the results of the shell disease survey will be submitted to the DMR Lobster Advisory
Council in May.
Study Shows Trap Density Affects Catch
Cheryl Waltz, graduate student in Animal, Veterinary, and Aquatic Sciences has been working with other University
of Maine researchers to study the relationship between the number of lobster traps per acre and the trap yield.
Researchers used both wood and wire traps baited with herring and cod heads for their experiments. 100 lobsters
were placed in a 35,000 square foot lobster pound owned by Maine Coast Seafoods in Spruce Head. Traps were
alternately set in groups of 4, 8, 12, and 16. They were hauled every 2 to 3 days and the catch was recorded.
Results showed that the maximum trap density to produce maximum yield was slightly less than 12 traps per acre.
It is interesting to note that the yield per trap within the pound, 0.85 pounds per trap, was the same as that
recorded by fishermen hauling in open water.
Profile:
"When I was going to high school in Boston, and they asked what my probable occupation would be so they could put
it in the yearbook, as a joke I said lobsterman. But then it was so far from reality." Today, Jack Merrill is a
lobsterman on Little Cranberry Island where he's been fishing for 17 years.
Jack's family has deep roots in Maine. His great grandfather was the governor of the state back around the turn of
the century and his father is from Augusta. As a child, Jack always spent his summers on Little Cranberry with his
family. Then, while he was attending Antioch College in Ohio, he was involved in a work study program at Outward
Bound on Hurricane Island. "I woke up one morning and said 'I love the water; I want to live here.'"
Jack moved to Little Cranberry and worked as a carpenter for the first year. "I'd be up on the roof looking out on
the water and all the other guys would be out fishing. So, I decided I'd try it as a sternman." Jack was a
sternman for three years and then decided he'd do it on his own.
"Before I ever went out and got my own boat, I had a lot of encouragement from the people on the island to do it.
After World War II, a lot of people had moved off the island. But now, there were about a dozen guys my age who
were starting to lobster and it was an exciting time because everyone was getting into it together. It was a
repopulation of the island."
Jack and his wife Erika live in Islesford with their two children, Laura and Sam. Jack also takes friends' and
neighbors' children with him out on his boat once or twice a month in the summer. "I think it's worthwhile telling
kids about the value in this kind of life. It's not the norm in America anymore for an independent guy to go out
on the water, to live in a good clean environment, and try to live cleanly in that environment. I think it's a
valuable thing for America to hold onto."
Besides being a member of the Lobster Institute's Board of Advisors, Jack has also been on the Board of the Maine
Lobstermen's Association for six years. As Jack puts it, " I'm getting involved in being a 'responsible'
lobsterman which means you have to go to a lot of meetings and work with the bureaucracy which is frustrating.
But, it's a way of life that's died out in most of America and I think it's worth fighting for."
What Will be the Economic Impact of the Gauge Increase?
"Conservation measures such as the gauge increase are much more acceptable if they can be accompanied by policies
that lessen the economic costs of these measures," according to Jim Wilson, University of Maine economist and
chairman of the Scientific and Statistical Committee of the New England Fisheries Management Council (NEFMC).
Wilson, along with economist Jon Sutinen of the University of Rhode Island, prepared a report for the Lobster
Oversight Committee of the NEFMC. The report states that, although it is impossible at this time to answer the
question about the economic impact of the gauge increase, there are actions which can be taken to minimize the
price declines expected because of an overall increase in supply and a shift away from chicken lobsters.
By interviewing the industry, Wilson and Sutinen came up with a number of impacts that the industry attributes to
the gauge. One is that there is a strong demand for one-pound "chicken" lobsters, especially in the summer tourist
trade. Since this sector of the industry feels there is an upper limit on the price per meal that can be charged,
if the average weight of a lobster increases, there will probably have to be some decline in price per pound in
the market. It is unknown whether the decline in price will completely offset the increase in weight.
Another impact is that export trade is especially dependent on chicken lobsters. Although some feel it would be
possible to sell larger lobsters, it would take an expanded marketing effort.
Canadian exporters to Europe and Japan are also in an advantaged position because of their greater supply of
chickens. In addition, because the Canadian and U.S. minimum gauges differ, the Canadians are forced to rely on
distribution channels that go around the traditional channels in New England. This may eventually undermine New
England access to Canadian lobsters which is necessary for the maintenance of our markets.
If the "Mitchell Bill" is overturned because of the Free Trade Agreement, and reconsignment of short Canadian
lobsters by U.S. dealers is not possible or too costly, Canadian exporters to the U.S. would be in an advantaged
position because they would be able to offer a range of lobsters not available to U.S. dealers.
Another impact the industry attributes to the gauge is the increase in cull lobsters. Reasons given are increased
handling of sub-legal lobsters in traps and the growing number of wire traps used.
The researchers suggest the following changes in the industry to help bring about this marketing shift:
1. The industry needs to reposition its product and distribution in a way that favors the development of up-scale,
year-round markets.
2. With a stronger emphasis on the less seasonal, national and international market, the industry will need to
rely more on market mechanisms that contribute to steady, seasonal supplies. Staggered Canadian/U.S. seasons and
pounding are fairly successful mechanisms for stabilizing supply. However, two other standard procedures to deal
with this are "product sales and inventory reporting"; and "a public exchange at either the first buyer or
wholesale level."
3. There should be a thorough study of the market and the nature of consumer demand to provide the detailed
information necessary for market "repositioning."
4. Finally, absolutely essential to the economic health of the industry (in both the U.S. and Canada) is the
maintenance of a free flow of product in both directions across the border.
Wilson and Sutinen feel that working towards this outcome would be a healthy and constructive development for
industry on both sides of the border. If the NEFMC feels these changes should be implemented, a strong cooperative
relationship with Canada would be necessary. For many reasons, this does not exist at the present time. The report
suggests that a delay in further increases in the gauge may be a way to establish this close working relationship.
Jack Merrill:
A New Breed of Lobsterman
Jack likes lobstering not only for the independent life style, but because he loves being outside and working
physically. However, he points out that the weather is tough at times, especially in November and December when
he catches most of his lobsters, and the physical stress is hard on his body. He also says that it's very
frustrating because, even though he's an independent businessman, he doesn't have a lot of say over what he'll
get for his product.
Wilson and Sutinen point out that it is not clear whether the expected increases in supply (which could possibly
result from the gauge increase) will offset the probable declines in price. However, it is clear that a shift in
the market away from the saturated, seasonal tourist trade towards the year-round trade would relieve the downward
pressure on price and improve the economic prospects from increasing the gauge.