This is one of the strangest pasteurized markets we have ever seen in our history. Traditionally, there is somewhat of a loose correlation between the pricing of fresh Venezuelan crabmeat and pasteurized Indonesian crabmeat. However, this year that correlation has been disregarded.
Currently, Indonesian pasteurized jumbo crabmeat is double the price of Venezuelan jumbo lump crabmeat. The same is true in the lump category and the superlump category; Venezuelan crabmeat is half the price of Indonesian. Why would any high-volume restaurant pay double for crabmeat when it is not necessary? Believe it or not, certain areas of the country have not adapted to using high-pressure pasteurized (HPP) fresh Venezuelan crabmeat. Additionally, there seems to be very little raw material (crab) being landed in Indonesia. Therefore, for the time being, pasteurized Indonesian jumbo lump crabmeat will sell in the mid-$30s a pound, while fresh HPP Venezuelan jumbo lump crabmeat is selling in the mid-teens. We believe the Indonesian market will decline in the second half of this year.
