Dec. 4, 2008 (Seattle, WA)—The Maine lobster trap fishery, located on the Gulf of Maine in the northeastern United States, has begun full assessment for Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for sustainable and well-managed fisheries.

The scope of the assessment covers all State of Maine-licensed lobster trap fishing vessels that fish in both state-managed waters within three miles of shore, and federally managed waters extending up to 200 miles off shore.  All of the vessels in this fishery use traps set on the sea floor, where lobsters live in a range of habitats including rocks, crevices and burrows.  The lobster fishery in the area dates back several centuries; wooden lath traps that were the precursor to more modern traps used today were introduced around 1840.

Landings from the Gulf of Maine lobster fishery in 2006 were 34,155 metric tons with an estimated value of $312 million.  In 2007, landings were 28,643 metric tons with an estimated value of $280 million.  The American lobster (Homarus americanus) is distributed across the continental shelf from Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada to the north, and North Carolina in the southern U.S. coastal states.  Generally, lobster abundance is highest in the shoal waters off of Maine and the Canadian Maritimes. 

Lobsters molt frequently throughout their life span, growing a new shell about 20 to 30 times, and the Maine lobster fishery under assessment catches both “new-shell” and “hard-shell” lobster.  The primary market for new-shell lobster from the Gulf of Maine is Canada, while the majority of hard-shell lobsters from this fishery are shipped live to Europe and major retailers and restaurants across the United States.

John Hathaway, CEO of Shucks Maine Lobster and Chair of the Fund for Sustainable Maine Lobster, the client group for MSC assessment, said “People want to make the right choices.  MSC makes it easy for buyers and consumers to support sustainable fisheries like Maine lobster.  Consumers want to know that their seafood comes from a fishery that is sustainable for the fishermen, their communities and the environment.  Maine lobstermen work hard to keep our fishery sustainable.  We need to make sure the world knows that, and the best way is through MSC certification.”

The assessment process, estimated to take 12-14 months, is being conducted by independent certifier Moody Marine Ltd.  The assessment will evaluate the status of the stock, the impact the fishery has on the marine environment and the effectiveness of the fishery management system.  External stakeholders will be included in the process to ensure that all relevant knowledge about the fishery is taken into account.  If granted MSC certification, lobster from the Maine lobster trap fishery will be eligible to display the MSC eco-label.

Brad Ack, regional director for MSC Americas, said “Maine lobster is one of the most highly sought after American seafood products and we are thrilled that this most iconic of fisheries has entered full assessment for certification to the MSC's international standard for sustainable fisheries.  MSC certification, should the Maine lobster fishery pass assessment, will provide assurance to millions of lobster fans around the globe of this fishery's sustainability.”

About Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)

The MSC is an international non-profit organization that was set up in 1997 to promote solutions to the problem of overfishing. The MSC runs the only widely recognized environmental certification and eco-labeling program for wild capture fisheries. It is the only seafood eco-label that is consistent with the ISEAL Code of Good Practice for Setting Social and Environmental Standards and UN FAO guidelines for fisheries certification. The FAO “Guidelines for the Eco-labeling of Fish and Fishery Products from Marine Capture Fisheries” require that credible fishery certification and eco-labeling schemes include:

• Objective, third-party fishery assessment utilizing scientific evidence;
• Transparent processes with built-in stakeholder consultation and objection procedures;
• Standards based on the sustainability of target species, ecosystems and management practices. 
  

The MSC has offices in London, Seattle, Tokyo, Sydney, The Hague, Edinburgh and Berlin.  In total, more than 140 fisheries are engaged in the MSC program with 38 certified, 86 under assessment and another 20 to 30 in confidential pre-assessment.  Together the fisheries record annual catches of more than 5 million tons of seafood.  Of fish for human consumption, they represent more than 42 percent of the world’s wild salmon catch, 40 percent of the world’s prime whitefish catch and 18 percent of the world’s lobster catch.  Worldwide, more than 1,900 seafood products resulting from the certified fisheries bear the blue MSC eco-label.  For more information, please visit www.msc.org

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Photos available upon request.

Media contact:
Kerry Coughlin
Communications Director—Americas
Marine Stewardship Council
(Seattle, WA)
Email: kerry.coughlin@msc.org
Phone:   +1-206-691-0188, ext. 103