Stop the exports

[tweetybug]

While we are blaming everything from comm, pollutions & dredging for the decline in our Blue Claws, we forgot to blame politics !!
Up to 50 % of commercial harvest are exported to "GET THIS" replenish waters off of China,Japan.....So yes while we have every law,penalty and fine for keeping female crabs, the government itself grants the OK to not only catch the females but, sends them with males abroad alive to reproduce.  After mating and so forth then they are recaptured by such country for processing.  Now the punchline is, after processing some is sent back to the USA for packaging.  Next time you go shopping read the label on crab meat.  You will find packaged in Maryland but processed elsewhere.

[Tom Powers]

Do you have a reference for this.  This is the first time I have heard about exporting live crabs anywhere.   I have heard about an export market for crab eggs, not the sponges but the orange egg mass from inside a female crab.  I do not know how big the market is though.

There is a big deal about IMPORTS of crab meat that is driving down the market for local crab meat and has the potential to close the local crab picking houses.

Tom

[ran_c]

i have heard of some live exports going overseas. this is all because of the catfish and crawfish imports. they have to call catfish basa because catfish is a term for domestic catfish. so they have to call the crabmeat blue swimming crab. to get around the laws they are importing crabs and crawfish and catfish to thier countries so when they import it,  it will have the same name. everyone is looking for ways to get around tariffs and names and this is just another way to do it. there was a million pound order of males and females in vermillion bay, la to be shipped overseas and the death rate was around 50%. nobody spends all this money for no reason. not sure if the whole order is filled yet but i have heard of it taking place.

[spinfreak]

.....So yes while we have every law,penalty and fine for keeping female crabs, the government itself grants the OK to not only catch the females but, sends them with males abroad alive to reproduce.

Not trying to detract from the overall point of your post, since I am unaware of this situation, but there aren't laws preventing us from taking Female crabs. Females with Eggs, yes....but not Females in general. It is in the best interest of the crabbing population however to release all females.

[Tom Powers]

I am not doubting what you are saying.  Nothing would surprise me at this point especially since they put the tarrifs on China for shrimp.

I really am interested in specific details or articles if someone has some references or links that they can point me to.

Where is Vermillion Bay?

Thanks,

Tom

[tweetybug]

The article was online and I am still looking for the website where I found it.  I do have it saved since I copy and paste alot - I always have a rough time when I need to find info again- so for me it is easier.  But, yes that was the sha-bang of it all. I think it was 53 million pounds exported in total.  Being a rec, if you're going to talk pounds it's alot.  
Spin as far as my speaking of females, from what I know (which I'll admit is not much !) some states impose a fine for females in excess of 10 per bu.  now I know that is immature females but, do you really think someone's there counting.  

[tweetybug]

 
There is a big deal about IMPORTS of crab meat that is driving down the market for local crab meat and has the potential to close the local crab picking houses.

 That is the irony of what I mentioned -- We are importing the crabs that were reproduced from the ones we exported in the first place.  
Basically they are stripping "our" resource then have the nerve to SELL it back to us.

[jack1747]

do you really think someone's there counting.

Trust me the VMRC counts them....

[Crabslayer]

It's all about the dollar.  Nobody cares about the resources until its to late!  

[ran_c]

I am not doubting what you are saying.  Nothing would surprise me at this point especially since they put the tarrifs on China for shrimp.

I really am interested in specific details or articles if someone has some references or links that they can point me to.

Where is Vermillion Bay?

Thanks,

Tom

i heard this through people and do not have an article to show you. soon there will be asian oysters on the market especially if ya'll put them in the bay for it to recover. they will be able to market them the same as chesapeake bay oysters cause they were asian oysters to start with. be very careful what ya'll do cause it may come back and bite you in the rear end.

[mariner]

http://searay.50megs.com/harvesting.html

[tweetybug]

I've read the link and the article mariner refers to is basicly the same as what I had found elsewhere.


sorry jack didn't mean to step on any toes.  I was sort of joking, which in serious matters as such I should not.
JC made a similar joke in another thread about crab counting.  I figured it was the norm.

[mariner]

TWEETYBUG:

Did you see the adjoining page at:
http://searay.50megs.com/imports.html

Lots of data here,

Mariner

[Fruitland Crabber]

When i read this it pissed me off terribly.

 Is there anyway we can start a petition im being serious  

[Joe Crabs]

Tweetybug, not sure what you are referring to but Sarcasm is my weapon of choice, don't like to joke on serious issues, just about everything else though.

[tweetybug]

mariner, yes I read page 2 - very enlightening.  


JC it had something to do with license regs having to wait until a crab count was done to establish the new seasons laws.  Let me add that you remind me of someone I know and without the sarcasm you would not be you.

[Tom Powers]

OK so I am still looking for the 50% exported number.  I did see 53 tons a year exported.  106,000 pounds.  For reference the VA harvest in 2002 was 27,000,000 pounds.  That 53 tons was only 0.4% of Virginia's harvest.  Further it was shipped to Japan where I would bet that it was eaten.  That same article quotes east coast northeast  landings of 77,000,000 pounds.

So back to the original post that the crabs are being exported in large quanities to replenish stocks.  Is there a reference?

Oh and yes the imported crab meat is not good for the state side crab industry.  I agree with that.  Domestic picking houses can not compete with over seas labor costs.

Tom

[mariner]

one more to keep us happy:

http://www.ibpcosaka.or.jp/network/e_trade_japanesemarket/foodstuff_beverage/crabs99.html

[procrabber]

usa can not compete for COST... but the quality of us crab is still higher... after reading some of these posts, maybe we should go to china for crabbing trips. it sounds like they are getting alot there. Any posts from china?

[jack1747]

I bought a lb of meat this winter while visiting some friends.  Wife made cakes.  I tasted one and thru them all away.  Cat food.

[tweetybug]

I did not expect this much controversy.  I was just merely passing on some information.  I apologize for my inability to find the exact website.  However Mr powers had you read correctly I said mariner's link basicly was the same - not it was the same or is the same.  the words of replenishment as well as further info were not based on that page.   I will be emailing the webmaster of the page to see if they will disclose where they derived their article from.  The stories were too similar.  
For years live crabs were sent for processing due to costs.  Anything to cut the costs.  

[jengirl1014]

So what are we going to guys?   We can't just sit around while this goes on!

[Steve]

http://www.ncwaterman.com/crabs/

[mariner]

Four years ago the ITC said that imports would have absolutely no effect on crab production.

http://www.seafoodbusiness.com/archives/00aug/trade.html


One more spot to read. Takes a bit of looking but all the data is here from the USDA:
http://www.fas.usda.gov/ustrade/ustlists/ImFASCm.asp?QI=&type=3&code=696