Consumers may be getting upset by higher lobster prices this spring but the Maritime Fishermen’s Union believes harvesters are finally getting a fair price for a premium seafood product.
MFU organizer Michel Richard says market lobster is now ranging between 6 and 8 dollars per pound but he says prices are coming down.
“Other areas such as Nova Scotia or the United States have perennially had a very high lobster priceas compared to what we’re getting and what our members are getting in the northern part of New Brunswick,” he notes.
Richard says the weather has been rough this spring for the fishery and demand for lobster has also grown substantially in recent years in Asia and Europe.
Richard believes lobster prices will likely remain stable depending on catches with several weeks left in the season for northern New Brunswick.
The season continues until the end of July in the upper Bay of Fundy and begins in mid-August for the Northumberland Strait of southern New Brunswick.
Ricard adds harvesters have been making a number of conservation efforts including seeding, increasing minimum sizes and developing better traps to ensure the long-term sustainability of the lobster fishery.
