Canadian Maritimers and tourists downed about double the number of McLobster sandwiches in 2011 compared with the previous year, says a McDonald’s Restaurants of Canada Ltd. spokesman.
“It is a safe bet we will be ordering at least a similar amount of lobster for the upcoming season,” Jason Patuano, the chain’s communications director for Eastern Canada, said Wednesday in interview from Montreal.
Word of the surge in McLobster sandwich sales comes at a time of economic tumult in the lobster industry across the Maritimes and certainly in Nova Scotia, where some lobster boat owners have complained that low prices make the industry a futile pursuit these days.
Patuano said McDonald’s decided to almost double its normal order for lobster early in 2011 after getting so many rave reviews about its McLobster sandwiches in 2010. The chain also decided to introduce the seasonal favourite a few weeks earlier than normal — at the end of May.
“It is a very popular item among people in the Maritimes, and with tourists,” said Patuano. “The extra weeks contributed to the additional sales.”
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