Trouble on the wharf

Fall lobster fishermen in P.E.I. and N.B. unhappy with lower than expected prices

P.E.I. lobster harvesters taking part in the fall season are not happy with the prices they are expecting to get for their catches.

The P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association, which represents most Island lobster license holders, issued a statement Friday saying that it has been told to expect prices to be in the $4 to $4.25 per pound range for smaller canner lobster and $4.50 to $4.75 per pound for larger market sized lobster. That’s down nearly $2 per pound from last year.

The association said it has been told by buyers that a stronger U.S. dollar is the main reason for the price drop.

But the association is not buying into that reasoning.

“The information collected by the PEIFA does not justify a $2 drop in price, but industry representatives argue the exchange rate is a key factor.

“The PEIFA and the Prince County Fishermen’s Association will continue to pursue fair and equitable prices during the 2017 season as a current prices are not satisfactory for Island harvesters. The PEIFA hopes the prices paid to harvesters will increase over the season.”

Island fishermen are not the only ones frustrated with the lower than expected prices. Some fishermen in eastern New Brunswick tied up their boats and remained onshore Thursday in a protest over prices.

Fishermen in ports such as Pointe-Sapin and Richibucto remained at the docks, saying landings are down and prices are low.

“Some processors were telling some fishermen that their price was going to be $5 and $5.50 a pound, and last week they found out from those same buyers and processors that their price was going to be far less. You can imagine the frustration of fishermen right now,’’ said Michel Richard, an organizer with the Maritime Fishermen’s Union. Fishermen say right now they’re being paid about $4.25 per pound for canners and $4.75 per pound for market lobsters.

They say it’s a big drop from about $7.50 per pound in the spring.

Richard said fishermen aren’t getting any answers from the processors and buyers about the price drop.

“The fishermen are frustrated because they don’t know exactly where to get that information,’’ he said.

But Jerry Amirault, president of the Lobster Producers Association of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, said producers are paying what the market can bear.

“At this time the markets are fragile, and we are working with the MFU and the fishermen,’’ he said.

Amirault said the change in the value of the Canadian dollar has had an impact on exports.

Since late July the value of the U.S. dollar has gone from $1.35 Canadian to $1.25 Canadian, the equivalent of a seven per cent drop for Canadian exporters selling in U.S. dollars.

The N.B. Department of Fisheries issued a statement, saying it is working with the fishermen and the processors.

In 2013, fishermen in New Brunswick, P.E.I. and Nova Scotia stayed at the docks in a protest over prices. At the time, prices had dipped to about $2.75 per pound for canners and $3.25 per pound for market lobsters.

The fall season, for the zone covering much of the Northumberland Strait, opened Aug. 8 and runs until Oct. 9.