Why less U.S. lobster is heading north

SACO, Maine - America's lobster industry is sending less of its catch to Canada as processing grows in New England.

U.S. lobstermen have long sent a large amount of their catch to Canada's Maritime Provinces. Some two dozen Canadian companies process millions of pounds of lobster meat every year into everything from vacuum-sealed lobster meat packages to lobster pate.

But the trend is slowly reversing. America exported about 69 million pounds of lobster to Canada in 2014. The 2015 figure was less than 67 million. The trend is happening as lobster catch is booming. U.S. fishermen set a record for lobster catch in 2012 and nearly topped it the following two years.

More processing plants in Maine are allowing fishermen to sell the lobsters locally rather than export.