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About Coast river business journal. (Astoria, OR) 2006-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 13, 2021)
BUSINESS NEWS Coast River Business Journal January 2021 • 9 Pandemic, domoic acid upend fresh crab market Story & Photo by Edward Stratton Coast River Business Journal estratton@crbizjournal.com the main overall big picture. It’s usually down in the communities, I think is where the impact gets felt the most.” This year hit particularly hard, Shirley said, with the coronavirus pandemic zapping the cus- tomer base for fresh crab starting with the Chinese Lunar New Year almost a year ago. “For me, the Chinese new year is just as import- ant as the Christmas holiday,” he said. “Last year, they shut us down. We were shut down right before the Chinese New Year. They canceled the biggest celebration they have in the world.” Shirley’s restaurant distribution has gone down by 80%, he said, with wholesalers buying a frac- tion of what they used to. A spokesman for the West Coast Seafood Processors Association said My lawn looks very unhealthy. How can I green it up and get rid of the weeds? get the acidity corrected with an application of fast-acting A: First, lime. Lime is the important first step in lawn care because a low ph caused by our abundant rain. Soil acidity will reduce the effectiveness of fertilizer. This simple ph correction sometimes is enough to green up the grass. Next, apply a slow-release organic fertilizer or a thin layer of compost. Wait until the soil warms up (over 50 degrees) to see if you still have a weed problem. Once the grass is growing better and greener, you may be able to ignore a few weeds. 34963 Hwy 101 Bus. • Astoria• 503-325-1562 that government closures during the pandemic had caused demand for crab at restaurants to fall by 70%. The coronavirus has added even more uncer- tainty to typically tense price negotiations that kept most West Coast crabbers at the docks in December. “It’s defi nitely a signifi cant impact to the price when you remove the customers,” Shirley said. “It’s supply and demand. And a lot of fi shermen are basing prices on a live market, when truly the frozen, cooked market is what makes this whole TRAVEL TRAILER/5TH WHEEL industry solid.” The closer the opening date gets to the Chi- nese Lunar New Year, the weaker the live market in Asia will be, Shirley said. But he expects a strong, pent-up domestic demand. “You’re going to have a lot more people that are buying crab meat in the grocery store than in previ- ous years, I believe,” Shirley said. “People like crab salads, they like their crab cakes, they like those things, and people are adapting a lot more to their kitchens and making a lot more at home.” NEW SHOP! LARGER BAYS MORE TECH’S TRUCK CAMPER/TOY HAULERS C E L E B R AT I N G 4 2 Y E A R S ! 1978 - 2020 Q: Price negotiations and domoic acid levels kept most Dungeness crab fi shermen at the docks into 2021. WE ARE OPEN! It’s been four or fi ve years since Mike Shirley, a co-owner of Ilwaco Landing, has been able to land fresh Dungeness crab for Christmas. Shirley and other partners also own Fishpeople Seafood, a retail market in Ilwaco. “It’s hard,” he said. “People in the Pacifi c Northwest expect fresh crab for Christmas.” Amid climate change and worsening ocean con- ditions, Shirley and other shops and buyers have had to adapt to fresh Dungeness crab no longer being a staple for Americans during the holidays. Fisheries managers in Oregon and Washing- ton most recently delayed the start of crab season through at least Jan. 15 because testing showed dangerously high levels of domoic acid in the vis- cera. The delay meant no crab could be landed north of the Port of Garibaldi. Malcolm Cotte, who opened FishStix Seafood Market in Warrenton in November, had one case of whole-cooked crab available just before Christmas. All of his wholesalers were out because of delays related to domoic acid, lackluster shellfi sh growth and whale entanglement rules in California. Clams and oysters picked up the slack. But it was a challenging fi rst holiday season trying to build a customer base for Cotte without fresh Dungeness crab. “Probably less than 50% will settle for previ- ously frozen,” Cotte said of his customers. Tom Novotny, a spokesman for the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission, said the fi shery has had some of its best years fi nancially over the last decade despite delays into January becoming routine. “The fi shery hits usually 80% of the catch in the fi rst week, and that seems to be a fairly standard mathematical equation, whether it’s the fi rst eight weeks after January, or whether it’s the fi rst eight weeks starting in December,” Novotny said. “The big impact is usually felt a little further outside of Right on the Freeway - Right on the Price 1-5 Exit 36 • Kelso, WA • www.UNEEKRV.com • 800-248-6335
