After being stagnant for more than a month since the season opened in lobster fishing areas (LFA) 33 and 34 on Nov. 24, the shore price for lobster started climbing in January, going from $8.50 to $12.50 over the course of a week.
“The price started going up within the last week in small increments,” said Dan Fleck, executive director of the Brazil Rock 33/34 Lobster Association. “The price is $12.50 today.”
Flack said there’s been some increase in demand for the Chinese New Year on Feb. 17, but not a whole lot of lobster is being held anywhere. “The demand seems to be outpacing the supply,” he said.
Geoff Irvine, executive director of the Lobster Council of Canada, said this was the first year that anyone can remember shore prices in Southwestern Nova Scotia not moving for the first 30 days of the season.
“This was a reflection of a highly nervous live lobster market due to many factors — the latest Chinese New Year on record, a drop in sales to China by 50 per cent as the seasons were starting, weak demand from other markets, an expected poor quality due to moult recovery and indicated low processing demand if the price was not workable. To move the ultimate volume required to processors and serve the limited live market, along with an over riding lack of confidence and financial support from their banks, buyers were cautious,” said Irvine.
“A massive die off of Vietnamese lobster during December and a lack of good quality lobster for air shipment and a drop in volume due to weather has meant an increase in shore and market prices in January. Many report a shortage of large lobster which has pushed up prices for selects and up,” Irvine added.
Irvine said processors were only going to be interested in the fall supply of lobster if the price was workable. “Given what happened, many were able to operate through December to help support the poor quality from Southwestern Nova Scotia.”
Processors have seen strong demand for lobster meat but weaker interest in general for lobster tails, especially in the larger sizes, said Irvine. While prices for tails have improved going into the winter, demand for whole in-shell from China has been low due to ongoing tariffs.
With low landings and winter weather setting in, some LFA 33 and 34 fishers landed their fishing gear in January.
“It’s that time of year. Middle of January in the North Atlantic. It’s not that uncommon for the catch rates to slow down. Some people will still pursue it. Others land their gear and wait for the water to warm up in a couple of months and go back at it again,” said Fleck.
“So far this season, we’ve had one completely fine day. There’s been days there’s been breaks in the weather here and there but one day when it was calm weather for the entire duration of the trip,” said Fleck.
“I do foresee a tremendous spring. We have hard shell lobsters now. The quality is improving all the time. With climate change, it’s looking more and more like our December fishery is going to be an April and May fishery. I might be wrong, I might be right. I’ll tell you the first of June,” said Fleck.
