Price Negotiations for Snow Crab Head to Panel

Negotiations on the minimum price for snow crab were held this week in St. John’s between FFAW and ASP. FFAW was represented by its crab negotiating team, consisting of representatives from crab fleets across the province.

Negotiations took place from Monday to Wednesday and no agreement was reached. FFAW and ASP will appear before the Standing Fish Price Setting Panel tomorrow morning to deliver arguments on the price for the year. The Panel has to select either the FFAW position or the ASP position. It is expected that the Panel will provide its decision by the middle of next week.

As harvesters know, the market for snow crab remains very high and demand remains strong. There are no inventories in the United States to put a drag on price. The American currency is stronger this year than last, with the USD strengthening by approximately 5%.

The FFAW final price position is $5.38. The price position of ASP is $4.95. The parties are 43 cents apart.

Thank you to the negotiating team for your hard work and input over the past few days. We will be posting the Panel’s decision as soon as it is released.