1-16 NWR  Crab Strike Ends

1-16 NWR Crab Strike Ends

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
This is your Northwest report for Monday, January 16 I'm David Sparks and for those of you who have a strong taste for Oregon's official "State Crustacean" otherwise known as Dungeness crab, fear not because there will be no shortage. A Dungeness crab fishermen's strike that started before Christmas has ended with Oregon commercial fishermen and processors agreeing to an ex-vessel crab price. The successful state-supervised price negotiations means freshly-caught Oregon Dungeness crab should be available to consumers this week and beyond. "The final outcome showed an extraordinary level of cooperation and compromise," said Hugh Link, Executive Director of the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission.

The parties were able to reach an agreement during the fifth round of negotiations that began in November.

The $2.875 is a starting price only, but the fishermen's marketing associations involved in the negotiations agreed to allow for a 72-hour pre-soak period that began Saturday, January 7. The first crab deliveries from areas that have not been fished yet, Cape Blanco to the Oregon/Washington border, will likely be tomorrow, Tuesday, January 10. Areas in which fishermen already have set gear, south of Cape Blanco to the Oregon/California border, will return to fishing immediately.

By law, Oregon allows dealers and fishermen to convene supervised price negotiations of the duly elected or appointed representatives of the fishermen and dealers with oversight from the Oregon Department of Agriculture.

Dungeness crab is the most valuable single species commercial fishery on the Oregon coast. Last season's harvest produced landings of 14.2 million pounds and an 'ex-vessel' value of $51 million dollars.

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