Weather-wise, January was a typical winter month in the southwestern Nova Scotia lobster fishery, but that’s about it.
The catch rate is down, there is an abundance of Jonah crabs and the quality is not up to par so far this season in lobster fishing areas (LFA) 33 and 34.
“LFA 34’s season started off pretty shaky with low catch rates once again being reported across much of the district. Mid-shore from Seal Island to St. Mary’s Bay have experienced the lowest catch with the offshore areas seeing more lobster than the previous season, though not the numbers we used to see just a few years back. The inshore areas of LFA 34 are also down in catch with a few areas capitalizing on what appears to be a short-term congregation of lobsters,” said Heather Mulock, executive director of the Coldwater Lobster Association.
“One common frustration amongst many captains has been the influx of Jonah crabs inundating the traps this year. Many captains and crew reported seeing more small, female Jonah crabs in their traps this year than they’ve seen in their entire fishing careers. In some cases, the traps contained so many crabs that the crew simply turned the traps upside down on the deck to shake the crabs out. While the crabs are still present, increased soak times allow the time needed to rid the traps of crabs once their bellies are full — to the disdain of fishermen,” added Mulock.
On a positive note, Mulock said there’s been significant reports of an increase of berried (egg-bearing) females throughout the mid-shore, providing a bit of optimism for the future of the lobster fishery in SW Nova.
Going into late January, Mulock said high winds in the region for the past few weeks have kept most of the boats tied to the wharves, which is not out of the norm for this time of year.
With the catches slightly down and the weather impeding fishing effort, the shore price increased to $14 a pound with talk it could go to $15, which was welcomed by the harvesters who need to make up for the lower catches as operational costs continue to soar, said Mulock.
“As for bottom ocean temperature, we are once again seeing colder waters which contributes to the lower catch rates — lobster’s metabolic activity is reduced in cold temperatures and their interest in feeding is much lower; they tend to go into ‘hiding’ under rocks/crevices.”
Kris Vascotto, executive director of the Nova Scotia Seafood Alliance, said the real big issue this year in LFA 33/34 is strictly related to quality.
“I’m pretty concerned about where we are right now because of the discrepancy between quality and price that we’re paying at the wharf,” said Vascotto.
“At the start of season, you had product coming in with a very low yield for processing. The blood protein process was just borderline and the shells in pretty poor condition. That actually hasn’t disappeared,” said Vascotto. “Usually, it’s just the first few weeks of the season and then it disappears. This year is very, very different. Essentially all the landings that have been coming in are typically low quality for this time of year. What that means is it’s a huge challenge to ship to market.”
Compounding the quality and mortality rate issue is a change in air shipping logistics, said Vascotto.
“Last year it was about a 50-hour transit time from here to Asia. Now it’s 70 hours. Couple that with a lower quality product, a wharf price of $14, it’s basically causing massive aggravation. It doesn’t make sense people are still willing to pay high values given the risk, mortality issues. That tells me people are still trying to service their markets for Chinese New Year. Shipping for Chinese New Year will be wrapping up soon. Are we going to see a relaxation on price after this big push goes through?”
Last season was a slow winter in the LFA 33/34 lobster fishery that ended up with a glut situation on the shore from the third week of April all the way to early June, said Vascotto.
Then there’s the question of what happens after Jan. 20 when President Donald Trump takes office.
“If the U.S. brings in these 25 per cent tariffs, then the U.S. customers we’re using to ship 13,000 tonnes a year to re-export that to the world, what on earth are they going to do? Will they be able to sustain it? How are we going to deal with this?” asked Vascotto.
Mulock said the industry is watching carefully and preparing for the potential for U.S. tariffs being implemented on Canadian seafood.
“There are mixed opinions on whether President Trump will impose such tariffs; however, given that the U.S. is one of Canada’s primary trading partners for live and frozen lobster (approximately 40 per cent), there’s an underlying nervousness among seafood buyers and harvesters,” said Mulock.
“Unlike other commodities that Canada exports to the U.S., live products such as lobster cannot be ’manufactured,‘ it is caught. Nova Scotia is known for being the largest producer of lobster and offers the best coldwater lobster in the world.
