P.E.I. lobster fishers seeing low prices despite strong catches

With only a few weeks left in lobster season on Prince Edward Island, fishers are seeing lower prices.

New London, P.E.I., lobster harvester Peter Pidgeon said harvesters were hearing about the big prices in Nova Scotia and getting excited for the season.

“All winter we were hearing big prices in Nova Scotia and you’re kind of like a kid in a candy store. Your eyes get a little bigger as you start to think, 'Well this could be a big year price wise and hopefully catch wise,'” Pidgeon said in an interview with CTV’s Josh Smith on Friday.

Pidgeon said prices are currently sitting a little lower.

“We’re at $6.25 a pound and $6.50 a pound right now,” he said.

Nat Richard, the executive director of the Lobster Processors Association, said the association is in the midst of the largest catch year ever in Canada.

“The cost to hold inventory just went through the roof. That’s always a concern when you have an imbalance in terms of the supply and demand picture and that’s very much what we are dealing with this year,” he said.

Richard said he understands harvesters want to get the maximum price of their catch.

“We're paying our harvesters every week. As processors, we're buying millions of dollars in lobster every week in the hopes that we can sell it over the coming months at a certain price. So there is fair amount of risk involved in that.”

“It is what it is and we need marketing people, we need people to buy our lobster,” said Pidgeon. “Not everyone can come to P.E.I. and get a lobster from a fisherman.”

 With files from CTV's Josh Smith.

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