Prince Edward Island’s fall lobster season got off to an inauspicious start in 2014 but ended on a high note.
Lee Knox, president of the Prince County Fishermen’s Association, recalls sailing out of Skinners Pond on Aug. 8 with winds gusting to more than 50 km/h as worried family members watched from the shore.
It was probably the worst setting day he’s seen in 27 years, said Knox.
“Fishermen were basically setting in a storm I guess you could call it,” he said.
“Our first load (of traps) was decent, but after that it was a terrible day the rest of the day. Somebody could have got hurt — but anyway, everybody got their gear in the water and fishing went on.”
DFO, P.E.I. and New Brunswick ports in Lobster Fishing Area 25 had a conference call Aug. 7 to discuss whether they should set traps as scheduled the next day or delay until Aug. 11.
Setting day went ahead as scheduled, but in hindsight it was a bad call, said Knox, adding that there’s already talk of changing the system for next year.
But once that bit of unpleasantness was over the season picked up, he said.
[blockquote size=”full|half|third|fourth|two-thirds|three-fourths” align=”left|right” byline=”Holli Casey, manager of Arsenault’s Fish Mart
“]It was great for the fishermen that everything was up, prices, catches — it helps with the spirit of everything. There was a lot of fishermen last year that their gear went up for sale, so this year was a nice boost.[/blockquote]
Prices generally started above 2013 levels, about $3.25/pound for canners and $3.50/pound for markets and rose to about $3.50/pound for canners and $4/pound for markets.
Catches were reportedly up from the same time last year as well, though exact numbers were not yet available from DFO. Catch totals from the fall fishery are generally tabulated and released early in the new year.
Holli Casey, manager of Arsenault’s Fish Mart in Summerside, reported seeing a lot of fishermen in good humour this fall, which hasn’t always been the case in recent years.
“It was great for the fishermen that everything was up, prices, catches — it helps with the spirit of everything. There was a lot of fishermen last year that their gear went up for sale, so this year was a nice boost,” she said.
“That will help them with everything. There was a lot of fishermen last year that didn’t have enough catches for their payments by the time they pay all their men and everything, so this should have boosted them a lot.”
And price wasn’t the only reason Knox said he left the season feeling a bit of optimism.
P.E.I. landed lobster received certification under the Marine Stewardship Council’s sustainable fisheries standards in November, something Craig Avery, president of the P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association has said is a must if P.E.I. wants to keep doing business with many of the leading grocery brands and the European Union.
Around the same time, the association inked a deal to sell $17 million worth of Island lobster to Chinese distributor Wuhan Lanesync Supply Chain. The deal makes use of the association’s new P.E.I. Fisherman’s Brand concept, which is packaging Island lobster for the premium market.
Of course the industry as a whole was not without its challenges this year.
Prices were still below where fishermen expected them to be and labour shortages in processing plants, specifically related to changes to the federal temporary foreign worker program, continued to pose challenges to both fishermen and processors.
But all in all, it was a good fall for most fishermen in LFA 25, with progress made on a lot of fronts, said Knox.
“It’s quite a relief,” said Knox.
“It takes a lot of pressure off people in the industry. I mean we’re working to try and get the industry in a better situation.”
