Coastal Areas– Informal surveys of members Maine’s commercial lobster industry paints a grim picture of the future.
According to most respondents, the 2018 lobster season will be anywhere from “bad” to “grim,” with many predicting it will be the last for as much as 90% of the industry.
“Going to be lots of long faces this year,” said one veteran fisherman. “Price is up, but there’s nothing out there right now.”
Others predict “hard times” and ruinous results.
“Lots of guys going to be hanging it up at the end of this year,” another fisherman said.
“Seen it before. You have to take the fat times with the lean. Most of these fellas don’t know that,” he added.
The survey of the lobstering industry happens each spring, as members begin painting boat bottoms and rigging gear for the upcoming season.
The lobsters will begin their crawl inshore from their winter habitats, with most fisherman agreeing they’ll be lucky if they get here by August.
“Once they finally get here, those bastards will drop the price, you just wait.”
