PORTLAND, Maine — Many New England lobstermen are still fishing deep into December this year because of unseasonably warm weather and an abundance of the critters, and Maine’s beloved scallops are a little harder to come by as a result.
The extra fishing hasn’t done much to change the price of lobsters, which are selling in the range of $8 to $10 per pound in Maine, typical for this time of year, when Canada is also hauling in large catches. But some lobstermen in Maine, the biggest lobster-producing state, also fish for scallops and haven’t made the transition to the winter scalloping season because lobster fishing is still strong.
As a result, Maine scallops — which usually cost about $20 per pound — have been slightly more expensive, sometimes selling in the $25-per-pound range, and some retailers are low on supply. Alex Todd, a Portland scallop and lobster fisherman, said he expects scallop fishing in the southern part of the state to pick up in mid-January. Supply from scallop-rich Cobscook Bay is helping feed demand for now, he said.
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