Florida spiny lobster prices are high this season due to increased demand from China and somewhat lower production. The spiny lobster season runs from August through March and is one of Florida’s top commercial seafood products in terms of dockside value.
The Caribbean spiny lobster market was soft until December, when demand increased for the holidays.
“After the holiday season, we expect it to be kind of steady and soft. Demand is not where it used to be,” says one buyer. The large tail market from the Caribbean, especially, has been softer than last season at USD 15 to USD 15.25 a pound. Five to 6-ounce tails are going for USD 16.25 a pound and 7 to 9-ounce tails are averaging USD 15.75 a pound.
Meanwhile, Florida spiny lobster prices have been high thanks to an increase in the export market to China and other countries and reduced production this season.
“I understand that the price is up because China and other countries are buying it and propping up the market,” says a distributor.
In addition, production started off high and has since tapered off. Last season, production remained steady throughout. “People are asking for it more. Everybody knows that [spiny lobsters] are in season and expects to see them, but we haven’t been getting that many in,” says a Florida wholesaler and retailer.
As a result, the season-opening wholesale prices rose to USD 7.78 a pound on average, which is around USD 2 higher than the starting price of the 2010-11 season. Prices range from USD 6 to USD 6.95 a pound, depending upon size.
One distributor has had trouble moving spiny lobsters domestically. “It is not a big seller to begin with, for my accounts, and the price has put a disadvantage on it. The price has been up 25 to 30 percent this season compared to last,” says the distributor.
Boosting the export market is the fact that some producers have configured holding tanks to keep the lobsters live; these lobsters bring a higher price, says an industry source. While the export of live spiny lobster to China has increased, exports of frozen lobster are “slow,” according to producers.
“We are still making sales, but it is not doing as well as last year, partially because Japan got hit by the tsunami,” says one producer.
Overall, production is expected to be equal or better than last year, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. For 2010, the agency reported a total spiny lobster harvest of nearly 6 million pounds, which were harvested at an average dockside price of USD 6.17 a pound. The total value of the market was USD 35.5 million in 2010.
