Tariffs, Fuel Costs Hike Trap Prices, Again

It takes a lot of metal to make a Maine lobster trap. With the advent of coated wire many decades ago, what once was largely made of wood became a cage of metal. Now, with a barrage of U.S tariffs on goods from around the world, the cost of that metal has increased. The cost of an average Maine lobster trap has skyrocketed as well.

Costs again are rising for lobster traps. MLA Photo.

The uptick in cost didn’t happen overnight. During President Trump’s first term in office, U.S. tariffs quickly made metal from countries like Canada much more expensive. The Covid pandemic then put serious wrinkles into international supply chains while the rising cost of fuel drove up shipping costs.

For Riverdale Mills, a Massachusetts-based company that provides much of the coated wire used to make lobster traps, it’s been a tough couple of years. “We source a combination of domestic and North American steel rod [to make Aquamesh® trap wire]. We prioritize U.S.-produced steel whenever possible. However, to ensure reliable supply and deliver the best possible value to fishermen, we supplement with imports when domestic availability is constrained or carries a significant premium,” Jim Knott Jr., company CEO, explained.

“Ocean freight, inland transportation, port handling, and compliance costs for steel rod and other inputs rose sharply during the pandemic and remain well above historical levels,” Knott continued. “Logistics is now a structurally larger component of producing Aquamesh® than it was five years ago.”

Stephen Brooks has his own financial headaches. Brooks and his two siblings run Brooks Trap Mill, the company founded by their father, in Thomaston.

“So much as happened. The shipping costs and cost for the product have gone up so much,” he said. “Now the European Union has added a carbon tax to all steel. It’s coming from every direction.”

For Brooks, the rapid increase in the cost of oil after the start of the Iran war on February 28 is affecting his company the most. “Fuel touches pretty much everything. Companies tell us that because of the war, tariffs, fuel expenses the cost [of their products] is going up,” he said.

But, unlike during the previous Trump administration and the pandemic years, Brooks finds that lobstermen are largely aware of why trap prices are so high this year. “Before, we had to educate a lot more people. Now they just don’t talk about it. We don’t have to explain because it’s been going on so long,” he said.

It’s hard to keep the price of a trap down when its primary component is steel, Knott explained.

“With tariffs at elevated levels, even steel imported from North America can carry duties of up to 50%, which become embedded in the cost of the finished product. At the same time, domestic steel pricing has risen in parallel with tariff protection, further compounding the issue,” he said. “These are structural increases affecting the entire industry.

Brooks never knows if the cost for trap components will remain the same from week to week or, occasionally, from day to day. As tariffs have increased international prices, so too has the price of American-made components. That makes keeping track of inventory particularly important.

“We just don’t know what will happen tomorrow. We didn’t have that situation before. You can’t count on anything today to be that way tomorrow. The economy is just so unstable,” he said.

This spring the company placed an order for shrimp mesh, used to make lobster trap heads. It came from an overseas company. “We placed the order two weeks before the tariffs came in [Trump’s uniform 10% global tariffs]. It cost 20% more when it arrived. You literally don’t know how much it will cost until it’s at the door,” he said.

Brooks and his team spend time asking lobstermen about how things are going for them and their thoughts about the season in order to get a sense of future demand. “We look around and ask customers how they are doing. It’s very valuable information for ordering ahead,” he said.

Everyone involved in the lobster trap business knows that trap prices are painful right now. “Over a ten-year period, the trend is clearly upward, although less uniform year to year. It is fair to say that recent increases have been among the most significant in decades,” Knott said.

“We really hope that we see some relief sooner than later. I want people to come in and say ‘I paid more for that trap last year than now.’ That would be so good,” Brooks said.

“I saw more young fishermen at the Fishermen’s Forum than in other years, so that’s encouraging. We’re going to stay hopeful.”