UPDATE ON CRAB FINAL PAYOUT

We won the Panel decision on crab in April, but ASP is attempting to draw us into an arbitration which would see rebate payments delayed to harvesters, allowing processors to sit on millions of dollars that belong in the pockets of harvesters.

Late last week, the parties met with the Panel because ASP was attempting to have cold storage and broker fees excluded from the receipt price – this despite the Panel decision clearly stating that only freight was to be excluded. The Panel upheld their April decision and stated that the Panel cannot write an analysis or clarification of its own decision, and if there is a dispute, then it would go to arbitration or a re-consideration (in the case of a change in market price or exchange rate). With the decision upheld (i.e., only transportation being excluded from the receipt price), the following day when the parties met to finalize the details of how the calculation would be completed (things like currency and definition of a sale), ASP claimed that only receipts for 30 lb bulk boxes of crab are to be included in the calculation of the settlement price.

Every reference to the final price settlement calculation in the Panel decision and the winning FFAW crab submission is that ALL receipts of 5-8 oz sections are to be used, regardless of destination and exclusive of transportation. Nowhere in the Panel decision or FFAW submission is 30 lb boxes mentioned; there is no mention of specific packaging formats at all. In the description of the final price calculation, it is repeatedly referred to as ALL sales of 5-8 oz sections. Page 12 of our submission, which was selected by the Panel, states:

To start, we learned that FOB Boston limited the receipts available to the third-party auditor to those sales that were delivered to Boston. That limitation excluded a significant number of receipts from the assessment. To correct that, we propose using all receipts for 5-8oz sections, net FOB plant. From the definition provided by ASP during negotiations, we understand that net FOB plant excludes the cost of freight and duties, as compared to FOB Boston (or delivered Boston) which includes these costs.

Yet, on Friday the Panel agreed with ASPs position that only 30 lb boxes be included.

Using only 30 lb boxes in the calculation is a re-writing of the Panel decision. This is wrong and is being used as a delay tactic by processors to hold onto money that rightfully belong to harvesters. We won the Panel decision, and we are calling on Premier Wakeham, and Ministers O’Driscoll and Goosney to protect the integrity of the process and uphold the Panel decision. This pricing structure can benefit the entire industry by allowing the fishery to start on time, making sure that everyone gets paid the same regardless of how much crab you have and when you land, and that a fair share of the market is paid to harvesters. ASPs repeated efforts to derail the pricing system only reenforces that this structure can work.