By Katharine Sucher, Student Correspondent
The mid-Atlantic seafood industry is seeing red! For years, blue crab has been the iconic crab product in Virginia. But now, industry and academic leaders in the mid-Atlantic are working together to develop a market for sustainable deep-sea red crab, too.
Although the mid-Atlantic is loyal to blue crab, project leaders believe that red crab also has its place in the market. Red crab is certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council, and a year-round supply could take pressure off the blue crab stock and provide another seafood option when blue crab isn’t in season. Red crabs are also larger than blue crabs, yielding an estimated 12 percent more meat.
While it might sound easy, selling Atlantic red crab in the region means overcoming several challenges.
“For this project to work, we need everyone,” says Dan Kauffman, Virginia Tech extension staff affiliated with Virginia Sea Grant (VASG). Kauffman, a seafood marketing specialist, is one of several researchers, specialists, and industry members trying to figure out how to bring red crab to the mid-Atlantic.
The first challenge is keeping red crabs alive and healthy after they’re caught. The stress from being caught causes crabs to regurgitate and foul the water in their holding tanks. Native to cold-water environments, red crabs are also sensitive to changes in temperature throughout the distribution process. Project leaders say that improvements to holding and transportation systems are crucial to maintaining a continuous supply of red crab and developing a profitable fishery.
“Everything is centered on keeping crab healthy because no matter what we do, if the crab doesn’t look healthy or can’t sustain distribution channels, the market will never develop,” says Bob Fisher, Virginia Institute of Marine Science extension staff affiliated with VASG.
Even after the team solves these holding and transportation challenges, the industry will have to get creative when introducing red crab to mid-Atlantic consumers.
“People don’t always like to try new things,” says John Herrmann, business manager at Tidewater Seafood, a retailer of live red crab in Norfolk.
Still, Herrmann says that red crab, which has a sweet taste, has performed well in taste tests with the public. In fact, three out of five customers who tasted the product at Herrmann’s store bought it on the spot. The store has also seen a steady growth in red crab sales since the beginning of December—a promising response.
Says Herrmann, “If you get them to try red crab, they like it—and they keep coming back for more.”
This technical and marketing research is funded by the Virginia Fishery Resource Grant Fund, which awards grants to members of the seafood industry for projects related to improving seafood production and processing in the state.
