ELLSWORTH, Maine — In recent years, lobster fishermen and processors have worked together to push for an increase in the state’s lobster processing capacity.
The goal of their cooperation has been to boost the economic impact of Maine’s annual lobster catch by processing more lobster in the state and exporting less of it for processing in Canada.
But there is one issue of late about which processors and lobstermen have not seen eye-to-eye: whether Maine processors should be allowed to process lobsters that Maine fishermen are not allowed to catch.
Maine has fairly strict laws about the size of lobsters that fishermen can bring ashore. If they are too small or too big, fishermen must return them to the water. The purpose of these existing laws, which are supported by Maine lobstermen, is to help make sure there are plenty of catchable lobsters in the Gulf of Maine for the foreseeable future. If they are small, in a few years they will grow into larger lobsters that are worth more money. If they are big, they can produce a lot more baby lobsters than their smaller counterparts, which will help ensure the future supply of the species.
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