Newfoundland Fishermen See Lobster Boom as Climate Shifts North

Carl Hedderson has been fishing for five decades along Newfoundland’s rugged Great Northern Peninsula. He once spent nights on Noddy Bay’s shore searching for squid with a flashlight. Back then lobsters were almost never seen. Now he watches them crawl on the beach after dark. He says the weather and temperature have changed. The new conditions feel right for the crustaceans. As lobsters move north, they seem to survive better and grow faster.

The lobster business thrives in other Atlantic provinces. In 2024 Nova Scotia landed nearly $962 million worth of lobsters, while New Brunswick brought in about $323 million and Prince Edward Island earned roughly $318 million. Newfoundland and Labrador’s catch has surged. In 2018 the province reported 3 300 tonnes valued at $48 million. By 2024 the haul more than doubled to 9 400 tonnes worth $137 million. Darrell Mullowney, a fisheries scientist, explains that lobsters favor a "Goldilocks zone" where water is neither too hot nor too cold. That zone traditionally sat near the U.S. northeast and the Maritimes, with Newfoundland at the northern edge. Climate change has pushed the center of the zone northward. Mullowney notes that lobster is now climbing to second or third place in economic rankings, rivaling northern shrimp.

Only a handful of locals hold lobster licenses in Hedderson’s area, and participation has fallen over the years. Young people have left, taking potential income with them. After the cod collapse in 1992 the government opened new zones for species like snow crab and northern shrimp, but his region was left out. The few existing licenses now fetch between $350 000 and $500 000, according to Sherry Glynn, secretary‑treasurer of the Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union. She worries that issuing new exploratory licenses could devalue those already held. Infrastructure is also lagging. When catches began to rise a few years ago there was a shortage of crates, and airport capacity for exports remains limited. The number of lobster pounds and live‑holding facilities is far behind the Maritimes.

Glynn says the industry needs time to catch up. Building ports, storage, and export links will take years. The provincial government oversees regulation, but details of future plans are still unclear. For now, the warming seas have turned lobster into a promising economic opportunity for rural Newfoundland, even as fishers work to expand capacity and keep young workers in the region.