Even with slowly dropping fuel prices, local lobstermen are having trouble making ends meet with the high cost of bait and low off-the-boat prices offered for their catch.
Lobsterman Steve Hope is grateful to be working on the dock at New Harbor Co-op, instead of trying to catch lobsters this fall. The lure of health insurance was part of what prompted his decision not to fish this year, but the current climate in the industry makes him glad for his decision.
“The current boat price is $2 a pound, that’s half what it was a year ago,” Hope said. “Boats can’t make any money at that price, and the overhead hasn’t come down.”
According to Hope, the price of bait hasn’t decreased, and lobstermen usually take two barrels of bait for every trip. He explained each barrel of bait costs around $110, so a single trip costs $220 just for bait.
Fuel costs are slowly coming down as the price of crude oil falls, but fishermen still need around $100 worth of fuel each trip, according to Hope. To save costs, some lobstermen are reducing the amount of days they fish, and letting their traps sit longer before hauling them up.
In addition, every lobsterboat employs a sternman who needs to be paid daily. “At $2 a pound, it’s not enough to keep going,” he said. “That $2 boat price was the norm 15 to 20 years ago.”
The international problems within the economy are affecting the lobster market, too. Hope explained more than half the lobsters caught in the fall go to processors in Canada. Because of problems in Iceland’s economy, their banks are having trouble lending money to the processors, so they can’t afford to buy lobsters to process.
The other problem, according to Hope, is reduced demand in the greater marketplace because of the global economic downturn. The Canadian processors are suppliers for cruise ships and chain restaurants, so with consumers reducing discretionary spending, those businesses are taking a hit.
Normally, October is one of the better months for lobster fishermen. Hope explained October is usually when they have the opportunity to put money away for the winter. Some lobstermen fish for shrimp during the winter.
Local people can help the lobster industry by purchasing and eating more local lobster. At New Harbor Co-op they are offering specials with additional volume discounts, $3.49 per pound or $3.19 per pound for 20 pounds or more.
“These problems can be fixed, but not overnight,” Hope said. “We have to find other ways to market our product. We also can’t be so dependant on Canada; there are no major lobster processors in Maine.”
New Harbor lobsterman Brian Sawyer was drawn into fishing by his love of the ocean as a young man. Growing up in New Harbor, his uncles and grandfather were lobstermen.
Sawyer is amazed at the increase in expenses over the past three or four years. He explained lobster traps cost more than $70, before a buoy or rope is even attached, and boats now cost between $150,000 and $250,000.
“It is almost too expensive to keep going,” Sawyer said. “Today’s $2 a pound price is comparable to 1970s prices, they were around $4 per pound for the last five or six years.”
Just to leave the dock, lobstermen spend more than $300, according to Sawyer, and that doesn’t include boat maintenance. He worries the economy won’t improve until after the election, and that fisherman will have to tough it out until then.
“Profits are down more than 60 percent in the last two to three years,” Sawyer said. “I’ve never seen a worse business climate for catching lobsters.”
Sawyer is deeply concerned about the new sinking line regulations intended to keep Right whales safe. He feels it is one more expense for lobstermen to take on, and is concerned the new rope will be damaged rubbing against the rocky ocean floor.
He is afraid fishermen will lose more traps, and have to regularly replace the sinking lines. “We can’t make a living with these replaced ropes,” Sawyer said. “That was a ridiculous bunch of legislation, but I have nothing against the whales.”
The lobster industry is the largest marine industry in the state, according to Sawyer. Many people make their living catching, selling, and supporting the lobster industry with necessary goods and services.
“Without a solution for all, this industry is in dire straits,” he said. “There are too many hands on the lobsters before they’re sold, too many middle men. The process needs to be streamlined to not price the consumer out of the market.”
