Snow Crab Season Closes At Lowest Level in Six Years

WASHINGTON – Sunday marks the end of Canada's first crab fishing season since The Humane Society of the United States called for a consumer boycott of Canadian seafood in response to Canada's massive seal hunt.

The numbers from Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans indicate that crab landings are at their lowest levels in six years, demonstrating that international outrage about the seal hunt is clearly putting a dent in the shell of the snow crab industry. Other factors contributing to the decline include the late start in the season and early closure of some fishing areas.

"We want to thank all of the companies and individuals that have signed on to our boycott," said Patricia Ragan, director of The HSUS Protect Seals campaign. "With businesses like Legal Sea Foods, Whole Foods Markets, Wild Oats Markets, and Down East Seafood pledging not to sell Canadian seafood, as well as upscale restaurants like Tavern on the Green and over 100,000 individuals who have signed the pledge online, it was only a matter of time until the Canadian fishing industry felt the effect. We intend to continue this boycott until the industry calls on Canada to stop the killing of baby seals."

The hunt is undeniably cruel—baby seals are clubbed or shot to death primarily for their pelts—many are skinned while still alive and conscious. The U.S. has long banned imports of seal products, but the market for seal pelts in Europe provides an incentive for the sealers to take to the ice every spring to kill as many seals as they can. This year's hunt, with over 300,000 baby seals slaughtered, was the largest killing of marine mammals in the world.

Seventy percent of Canadian seafood is exported to the United States, producing $2.8 billion annually for the Canadian economy and making the industry a viable target for a boycott. Sealing is an off-season activity conducted by commercial fishermen from Canada's East Coast. Even in Newfoundland, where more than 90 percent of the sealers live, sealing income accounts for less than one percent of that province's gross domestic product and only two percent of the landed value of Newfoundland's fishery.

"The Canadian government clearly has an economic choice to make," said Ragan. "They either will continue to see a decline in seafood sales or they will cancel the seal hunt—it's that simple."

The Humane Society of the United States is the nation's largest animal protection organization representing more than nine million members and constituents. The non-profit organization is a mainstream voice for animals, with active programs in companion animals and equine protection, disaster preparedness and response, wildlife and habitat protection, animals in research and farm animal welfare. The HSUS protects all animals through education, investigation, litigation, legislation, advocacy, and field work. The group is based in Washington and has numerous field representatives across the country. On the web at www.hsus.org.