Dungeness crab landings may not tip the scales in record fashion this season, but higher-than-normal meat fills were recorded along the Oregon coast weeks ahead of schedule.
“The plants all say this is some of the nicest quality that they’ve seen for December,” says Nick Furman, executive director of the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission in Coos Bay, Ore.
When Oregon’s fleet began fishing on Dec. 1, ex-vessel prices stood at USD 1.60 a pound, a guaranteed price for the first week after state-supervised negotiations with processors. By mid-December, the price had crept up to USD 1.75. Last year, the average price per pound in Oregon was USD 2.38, the highest average in the previous 10 years.
As the season wears on and production wanes, expect ex-vessel prices to creep up to the USD 3.50 to 4 range. Last month, ocean-run clusters were priced at about USD 5 a pound, f.o.b. West Coast.
Dungeness landings have been erratic this decade. Landings hit 88.8 million pounds in 2006 before falling last year to 57 million pounds, according to the National Marine Fisheries Service.
Weather remains the fishery’s most unpredictable variable. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health determined that from 2000 to 2006, the Pacific Dungeness fleet faced the most dangerous conditions of all U.S. fisheries, including those in Alaska. During the 64-hour presoak preceding the opening, two Oregon fishermen lost their lives.
Wholesalers remain nervous about sales prospects over the winter and spring months as seafood buyers and consumers grapple with the global economic crisis. Sales of high-end items like lobster and crab suffered throughout the fall.
“We’re off to a good start,” says Furman. “We might be pleasantly surprised come Aug. 14” when the season ends.
