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The lobster trap : the global fight for a seafood on the brink  Cover Image Book Book

The lobster trap : the global fight for a seafood on the brink / Greg Mercer.

Mercer, Greg, (author.).

Summary:

"A page-turning examination of how a multi-billion dollar industry creates enormous wealth and endless heartache, at a time when climate change, swings in the market, and greed are impacting fishermen's livelihoods in new and dramatic ways. Lobster has been a phenomenal success story, with a commercial fishery that has generated enormous wealth and fuelled global appetites for one of the world's most recognizable luxury foods. The great lobster boom that began in the 1990s has also led to violent fights over who has the right to catch North America's most valuable seafood, including for Canada's Indigenous people who until now have been excluded from this industry. But overfishing and climate change are pushing lobster toward a cliff. By 2050, it's expected that warming ocean waters in the Gulf of Maine will cut lobster populations by two thirds. In places like Maine, the heart of America's lobster industry, fishermen who don't see a future in lobster are already selling their boats and becoming farmers, growing kelp and raising oysters. Unlike previous fishery collapses, there's no other large-scale wild seafood species left that fishermen can switch to. The economic upheaval expected to follow the decline of lobster will devastate coastal communities in both Canada and the U.S. that have come to rely so much on it. Greg Mercer takes readers on a global journey inside this precarious moment for the lobster industry, to show the money and heartache, and the danger and violence, tied up in it. Along the way, he explores lobster's remarkable history, the gold-rush mentality that surrounds it, and examines what the future holds for this most precious shellfish"-- Provided by publisher.

Record details

  • ISBN: 9780771006326 (hardcover)
  • Physical Description: 303 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (chiefly colour) ; 23 cm
  • Publisher: Toronto, ON : McClelland & Stewart, 2025.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Subject: Lobster industry.
Lobster populations.
Lobsters > Climatic factors.

Available copies

  • 1 of 1 copy available at Tsuga Consortium.

Holds

  • 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
Location Call Number / Copy Notes Barcode Shelving Location Status Due Date
Cookstown Branch 338.3725384 Mer 31681010430411 NONFIC Available -

  • Random House, Inc.
    A page-turning examination of how a multi-billion dollar industry creates enormous wealth and endless heartache, at a time when climate change, swings in the market, and greed are impacting fishermen’s livelihoods in new and dramatic ways.

    Lobster has been a phenomenal success story, with a commercial fishery that has generated enormous wealth and fuelled appetites for one of the world’s most recognizable luxury foods. The great lobster boom that began in the 1990s has also led to violent fights over who has the right to catch this valuable seafood, including many Indigenous people in Canada, who until recently have been excluded from this industry. Now overfishing, trade wars, and climate change are threatening the future of this fishery in deeply troubling ways.

    By 2050, scientists expect that warming ocean waters in the heart of North America’s lobster fishing region will cut catches by two thirds. In some parts of America, there’s hardly any lobster left to catch. Unlike previous collapses, there are few other large-scale wild seafood species left that fishing crews can switch to. The economic upheaval for fishermen and seafood companies alike could devastate coastal communities in both Canada and the United States.

    In this deeply reported, resonant, timely book, Greg Mercer takes readers on a fascinating global journey and inside this precarious moment for the lobster industry, to show the money and heartache, and the danger and violence, tied up in it. Along the way, he explores lobster’s remarkable history, the gold-rush mentality that surrounds it, and examines the looming crisis for this most precious shellfish.

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