This is Judith Ann on Friday (October 26) at the Town dock in Naskeag Harbor, bringing in her lobster traps seemingly a bit early. This has been a worrisome fishing season in which Maine fishermen (male and female) have been caught in the middle of an unanticipated trade war.
President Trump’s imposition of a 25 percent tariff on imported steel reportedly is increasing the price of lobster traps. More significant, one of the retaliations by lobster-loving China, a major purchaser of Maine Lobsters, was to impose an additional 25 percent tariff on live and processed U.S. lobsters. And, there are reports of Canadians increasing their share of the China market by reselling Maine lobsters to China as Canadian shellfish. (Brooklin, Maine)