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PORTLAND, Maine (WBZ NewsRadio) — A group of Maine lobster fishers is suing an influential seafood watchlist for telling people to avoid its products. Seafood Watch is a list run by the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which labels the environmental impact of seafood around the world.
Lobster fished from the Gulf of Maine were put on the organization's "Avoid" red list in September 2022. The organization says that the industry there puts the endangered North Atlantic right whale at greater risk. That led several retailers like HelloFresh to stop carrying the lobsters.
The suit from the industry says Maine lobster being placed on the organization's red list was defamatory, arguing that Seafood Watch's scientific justification for putting the lobster on the list was knowingly false.
"There are no “scientific data” showing that any North Atlantic right whale has been harmed — let alone killed — by entanglement in Maine lobster fishing gear in more than 18 years," the suit reads. Among other damages, the fishers asks for reimbursement of all the business they've allegedly lost as a result of the listing.
Another suit was filed by four Massachusetts lobstermen earlier in March. It takes a similar tack to the Maine lawsuit, arguing that the fishermen have been defamed by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and that there's a lack of scientific evidence behind the claims.
Both Maine and Massachusetts lobster industries saw precipitous downturns in revenue from 2021 to 2022, with the Maine industry shrinking by 37%.
The aquarium responded to both suits with a statement on Wednesday.
“These meritless lawsuits ignore the extensive evidence that these fisheries pose a serious risk to the survival of the endangered North Atlantic right whale, and they seek to curtail the First Amendment rights of a beloved institution that educates the public about the importance of a healthy ocean," an aquarium spokesperson said.
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