Science Centres: Fisheries

An artificial diet for lobsters is set to add thousands of dollars to export earnings.

The diet has been formulated by NIWA, in conjunction with Ranchman’s Pet Food Ltd, and maintains condition in wild-caught lobsters while they are held before sale.

About 90% of lobsters caught under quota are exported live, and fishers like to hold their stock for the best price. This strategy is hampered by the fact that wild-caught lobsters don’t feed readily on most pelleted diets, and feeding them trash fish fouls the water. In practice, therefore, most lobsters are held without food. The results: lobsters lose weight; more animals die during transport; and cannibalism.

The loss to the industry is substantial. For a unit holding 10 tonne of lobsters, the fisher effectively loses 828 kg of lobster weight by holding them for 60 days. At peak market price, this equates to over $41,000 in lost earnings.

For that 10 tonne unit of lobsters held for 60 days, our new lobster food would cost $9,000. That means fishers could make an extra $32,000 from that unit by using the diet.