Dungeness Crab Prices Spike To $9 A Pound In Advance Of Chinese New Year

As the Dungeness crab season reached the end of its peak this month, commercial crab fishermen saw a massive increase in what processors paid per pound.

In Oregon and Washington, fishermen reported they were getting about $9 per pound. The season started in December at a negotiated price of $3.10 per pound, which later rose to $3.50 per pound, an increase over last year when fishermen saw prices of $2.62 per pound at the start of the season. By Christmas, fishermen were getting close to $4.50 a pound.

Two things could be driving the higher prices: scarcity along with undiminished demand.

Though the crab coming up in fishermen’s pots have been the best fishermen and fishery managers have seen in years, there just haven’t been as many of them.

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