Maine fishermen brought in about $464 million worth of lobster last year, a $72 million increase over the previous year’s haul, which had been the lowest in the decade.
The rebound was mostly driven by higher lobster prices. The average price at the dock jumped from $3.97 a pound in 2022 to $4.95 last year, according to the preliminary data that the Maine Department of Marine Resources released Friday.
By volume, fishermen harvested nearly 94 million pounds of lobster, the lowest in 15 years.
Kristan Porter, president of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, said the market seems to be settling down after fishermen had a record-breaking haul back in 2021.
"Ninety three million pounds is still quite a lot of lobsters compared to the traditional average," said Porter, who fishes lobster out of Cutler. "The resource is healthy, I just don't think that we expect to maintain that 100-million-plus pounds every year."
Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher said lobstermen made slightly more fishing trips last year compared to the previous year."
"Trips were still very low," he said Friday from the Maine Fishermen's Forum in Rockport. "Trips are low and likely caused by the cost of doing business, with high diesel and high bait prices."
Keliher said upcoming changes in the minimum and maximum sizes that lobstermen are allowed to catch may also impact future landings. Gauge changes are set to go into effect next January in an effort to preserve the juvenile lobster population.
"We don't know exactly what the short-term impact is, but again, the concept here is thinking about what the long term viability of the industry is," Keliher said. "Think of it almost as an insurance policy."
Across all fisheries, the value of landings increased by $25 million over the previous year.
