With a market worth $6 billion, if food has a king, it’s lobster.
Yet, there was a time when lobster was hated enough that it was called the “cockroach
of the sea” or a “poor man’s food,” and only served to prisoners or servants.
The story begins in the late 8th century, in an age of Viking raids.
Along the coast of Europe, fishermen were traveling out into deeper and darker
waters due to advances in boat design.
These vessels were perfect for deep sea fishing, and they came at a perfect time.
Meat-free religious holidays had been introduced, but in the eyes of the church,
seafood like fish and lobsters didn’t count, making them an ideal replacement.
Only the richest could afford to have lobsters transported from the boat to their
kitchen in time before they went bad, earning lobster a reputation for being associated
with wealth and privilege across Europe.
They were even featured in paintings as a way to show wealth.
But in the Americas, the situation was exactly the opposite.
In the new world, two foot high piles of lobsters washed ashore regularly.
They were so plentiful that Native Americans not only ate them as a source of protein,
but used them as fertilizer and fish bait.
As colonists moved into the region, lobsters were so devalued that they were called a “poor
man’s food” and fed to prisoners and servants.
Servants who had a say in their contracts refused to eat lobster more than three times
a week, and urban legends claim that prisoners believed lobster meals to be such a cruel and
unusual punishment that it led to prison riots.
This was because lobster was being cooked the wrong way, resulting in it going bad quickly
and people technically eating rotten meat.
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At the time, lobsters were cooked after being killed like any other meat.
What people didn’t realize was that when killed, lobsters release an enzyme that rots
the rest of their body, giving the meat a bad smell, a mushy texture, and a terrible taste.
This led to lobsters being given a reputation as the “cockroaches of the sea.” The shame
of eating lobsters was so great that people would discreetly hide the shells, fearing
that others would catch them eating it.
But eventually, lobsters would slowly claw its way back to its former reputation of
being associated with wealth and privilege.
In the early 19th century, a French chef and inventor named Nicolas Appert developed
a method to preserve food: canning.
The process involving placing food inside a sealed bottle or jar then heating
it to sanitize and kill any bacteria.
The next year, an English inventor named Peter Durand improved on Nicolas’
method by using tin-coated cans instead of sealed bottles or jars.
Canning then spread from Europe to the U.S..
Decades later, a cannery in the U.S.
set up an assembly line for lobsters and despite some hang ups, soon they
set a trend that created an industry.
Along with competing canneries, fishermen began to haul lobsters back
to their homes and can them themselves.
Meanwhile, railway managers schemed up a way to serve lobster to passengers
who didn’t know about its reputation.
They claimed lobster was a rare, luxury item, and passengers not
only believed them, they loved it.
Some passengers even began to request lobsters when dining out.
Around this time, chefs realized lobster looked and tasted delicious after being boiled alive.
Soon after, the demand for lobster grew — leading to the price
skyrocketing and the supply dwindling.
Lobster populations were being devastated due to overfishing from a lack of regulations.
Amid the Great Depression, almost no one could afford to eat lobster anymore.
With less pressure to catch lobsters, fishermen caught smaller hauls,
allowing lobster populations to recover.
Soon after, the fate of lobsters would unexpectedly take another turn.
Amid the Second World War, the Canadian government encouraged civilians to eat foods
that were in surplus like lobster instead of those that were rationed for the war effort.
Magazines proclaimed it was patriotic to eat lobster and shared
recipes for various lobster dishes.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., lobster was already and remained classified as a delicacy.
It became the dish that movie stars seeked when they went out for dinner, what the billionaire
Rockefellers served at their parties, and what new-rich families ordered for their weddings.
Today, lobster is widely known as a delicacy that’s only a step down from
caviar, and prices remain high even when there’s an increase in supply.
One of the reasons why is the logistics involved.
Fishermen catch lobsters using bait and traps that have to be dropped to the ocean floor.
If the traps end up being full, the fishermen aren’t necessarily lucky.
They often have to throw tons of lobsters back into the ocean due to regulations.
As for the lobsters that can be kept, their claws are bound and placed on
ice before being taken back to shore.
Afterward, they need to be kept in saltwater tanks before being shipped live.
And when they are being shipped, they need to be kept cool and moist and have
enough oxygen to survive — all of which increases the cost of distributing them.
Another reason why lobster prices remain costly is to maintain its luxury image.
According to studies, people often assume there’s a link between price
and quality and some get more pleasure from products that are more expensive.
And while a product that’s considered expensive can scare off business, people are generally
suspicious of products that are cheaper.
So even when the wholesale price of lobster is marked down from a good harvest, many
restaurants will choose to keep the price high to maintain its luxury image, and make
other menu items look more reasonably priced.
In spite of knowing all this, some customers might not mind and simply be
happy to get their hands on some lobster.
Because according to reports, a lobster shortage may be coming soon.
Herring and mackerel are sought out as lobster bait and are now
hard to find due to overfishing.
In the U.S., the New England Fishery Management Council has ordered fisheries
to catch fewer pounds of herring — around 77% less when compared to previous years.
Meanwhile, in Canada, the Fisheries and Oceans department has gone as far to
shut down herring and mackerel fisheries.
In some areas, bait prices have gone up as much as 50 cents per pound, which is a
lot considering one fishing boat typically uses about 500 pounds of bait per day.
On top of these challenges, some countries have begun to ban boiling lobsters alive.
Activists have argued that it’s inhumane since lobsters can feel pain.
However, one researcher has countered that lobsters’ brains are incapable
of processing pain and that the evidence that they can is weak.
And while countries like Switzerland permit stunning lobsters before
boiling, the process requires a device that can cost thousands of dollars.
In spite of these challenges, the lobster market today is worth $6.3
billion, and is expected to grow to over $11 billion in the coming years.
This is the story of how the lobster went from being called the cockroach
of the sea to becoming a gourmet dish.
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