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Commercial Fisheries News
Volume 36 Number 2
October 2009
No quick action on ME lobster task force ideas
AUGUSTA, ME – Intense rivalry among its own members is the Maine lobster industry’s biggest weakness. And the best way to fix the problem is for all components of the industry – harvesters, processors, buyers, and support organizations – to join forces to create a cooperative, comprehensive research and marketing body.
That’s the basic conclusion of the state-funded report complied by the Moseley Group, the consulting firm hired by the “Task Force on the Economic Sustainability of Maine’s Lobster Industry” that Gov. John Baldacci created last October. The task force concurred and included the concept in the Maine Lobster Industry Strategic Plan, which it forwarded to the governor on Aug. 20 (see related story previous page for details).
However, concrete action on the recommendations won’t come any time soon. In mid-September, the Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) confirmed that it would not be filing legislation aimed at implementing any of the strategic plan elements, at least not this year.
“We’re going to take some time to build support within the industry,” said DMR Commissioner George Lapointe.
Not surprisingly, the sticking point is the price tag to annually fund the recommended research and marketing body – $10 million. The state doesn’t have the money. The industry doesn’t have the money.
But that level of investment is what is required for any research and marketing effort to make a difference, according to the Moseley Group report and the task force.
“I wish we had a lot of money, but we don’t,” said Lapointe. “We have to be realistic.”
Who pays, benefits?
During discussions with industry members this year, the idea of collecting 10 cents per pound to fund marketing efforts has been met with strong resistance.
Harvesters feel certain that even if dealers were required to pay a portion of the fee, it would come out of lobstermen’s pockets in the form of lower boat prices, which is something no one can afford given depressed market conditions.
Plus, many lobstermen highly doubt they would benefit from any marketing effort, convinced that dealers would simply pocket any added income from increased demand.
Dealers, too, are skeptical not only of the recommendations but of the entire task force exercise.
“It was a waste of money,” said Peter McAleney of New Meadows Lobster in Portland, who serves as president of the Maine Import Export Lobster Dealers Association. “It didn’t tell the dealers anything they didn’t already know.”
McAleney suggested the $150,000 of Lobster Research, Education, and Development (RED) Fund money used to pay the Moseley Group would have been better spent on advertising. The RED Fund gets its income from lobster license plate sales.
From his perspective, the ongoing global economic downturn is the main reason everyone in the lobster business is suffering these days.
“We have to wait for the recession to be over,” McAleney said.
Susan Bayley of Bayley’s Lobster Pound in Scarborough agreed.
“I don’t believe there is a problem in the industry. There’s a problem in the economy. Until the economy turns around, the price of lobster isn’t going higher,” she said.
McAleney added that he sees one more problem with the industry today.
“There are too many lobstermen and too many dealers. Everybody knows it but you hate to hear the real deal,” he said. “The fact is some people are going to have to drop out.”
Good for industry
Patrice McCarron, executive director of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association and vice chairman of the task force, had a very different perspective.
“The recommendations to the governor are comprehensive and definitely in the long-term interest of the industry,” she said.
While task force detractors criticized the cost of hiring the consultant and suggested similar work had been done before, McCarron said the Moseley Group’s report offered unique and important insights into the workings of the industry.
“Moseley really looked at the industry as one business whose purpose is to get lobster to the customer,” she said. “Those of us who work in the industry are entrenched in our different sectors. The Moseley report shows the interconnectedness of those sectors.”
McCarron added that the report highlighted how mistrust, especially between harvesters and dealers, prevents the Maine lobster industry from achieving its full potential.
“This rivalry harms our ability to be a more profitable industry. Everyone is so involved in looking down to protect their own interests that no one is looking up to see the best way to get our product to the customer,” she said.
Food science research through the new marketing and research body has the potential to transform the lobster business like it has the cranberry industry, McCarron said.
Such research could lead to the development of innovative lobster products aimed at busy consumers, who increasingly rely on ready-to-eat and other convenience meals. Such value-added products could increase the demand for lobster.
However, McCarron agreed that successful implementation of the task force recommendations hinges on funding and industry buy-in to the ideas.
“The question of how to raise the money is something we need to discuss. This is a global market we’re competing in. What investment does it take to do that and what return can we expect? These are things we need to talk about,” she said. “People are hurting right now. We need to be sensitive to that reality.”
Next step
According to several people who attended a DMR-sponsored meeting of harvesters, dealers, and processors in mid-September, there was general support for using RED funds to hire an outreach coordinator to continue to advance such discussions among industry people.
Lapointe added that it was his intention to ask the RED board of directors to provide funds for that purpose.
He added that the DMR also considered and rejected the idea of creating a “transition team” to work on implementing the task force’s strategic plan in large part because of the time demands such a team would place on its members.
Instead, Lapointe said his office will work with the DMR Lobster Advisory Council and call on industry members to serve on short-term, ad hoc panels to advise the department on how best to go forward.
“I’m glad we did the task force report because it put focused attention on this industry,” he said. “Now it’s time to start the slow hike up this next hill to build consensus and support for moving forward.”
Lorelei Stevens
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