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Where to Buy Maine
Lobster?
Use any search engine and you’ll find lots of results for people claming
to sell “Maine Lobster”. The term
has been applied to lobsters caught
from Nova Scotia to North Carolina.
Real Maine lobsters come from the
cold, clean waters of Maine. MaineLobster.Com
tells you which companies are selling
real Maine Lobster and tries to
give some information and insights
about freshness, quality and product
offerings to help buyers find the
right seller for their needs.
The lobster business has many levels. We’ve broken them into the following
categories:
Lobstermen who work their traps daily. Most of these lobstermen bring their
catch in every day to the docks
and sell to various commercial buyers.
Some have begun selling on the web
creating a direct connection to
the lobster boats.
Small pound owners have holding tanks with a moderate holding capacity of
around 100-200 or so lobsters. Some
of these folks have their own boats
and traps but also buy from the
other lobstermen at the dock. Some
of these folks also run commercial
enterprises and buy from the lobstermen
to fill their pound which helps
supply a restaurant or fish market
retail store they operate. There
are also some that run small pounds
and sell only through the internet.
Large pound owners can have facilities that hold several hundred thousand
pounds of live lobster at a time.
These folks buy directly from lobstermen
and sell, in volume, to seafood
companies and restaurants around
the world. They hold a large volume
of lobsters but they also sell a
large volume, turning over the product
fairly quickly. The best of the
big pound owners don’t have lobsters
hanging around more than a week.
Some of these folks have gotten
into the web retail business, selling
direct to buyers.
Internet sales operations have sprung up everywhere. These folks simply act
as sales agents, running fancy websites
and taking in orders that are filled
and shipped under an agreement with
a pound owner. Often, it’s difficult
to find information on where these
folks get their lobster and who
is filling the orders.
Hard-shell lobsters are available all year and they survive shipping the
best. However, during the summer
months, lobsters shed and hard-shells
account for only about 10-20% of
the catch. Some folks may sell hard-shells
at a premium but don’t worry, if
packed carefully the soft-shell
lobsters of summer will travel fine.
Many web lobster companies have branched out into a complete line of seafood
offerings.. Looking closely, you’ll
notice that many of the items are
similar, probably because of the
sites buy these items from the same,
or similar, vendors. There are a
few sites that specialize in making
their own “gourmet” offerings that
are far more interesting and, in
our experience, a better quality.
Various internet lobster sellers offer “packages” for home clambakes. In
large part, these include steamer
clams and possibly a cooking pot.
So long as you know that the lobsters
and clams are from Maine and fresh,
these are a delightful way to one-stop-shop
a complete clambake. Some may even
provide seaweed. However, several
folks have taken to include corn,
potatoes, butter etc. Our feeling
is that those things are always
better fresh and should be bought
at your local store. Ask your seller
if they sell gift certificates.
A gift of a live lobster dinner
from Maine that someone can redeem
anytime in the year, makes a very
special gift.
In the end, focus on the lobster and clams. That’s what important. Find a
seller that has offerings that suit
what you need. And always buy FRESH
MAINE LOBSTER. Enjoy |
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