Over 90 percent of the local Watermen are not crabbing for Maryland crab but are oystering for a living right now. The water temperatures in the bay are hovering around 50°, which is the temperature at which crabs go into hibernation for the winter. Consequently, the supply of raw material is grinding to a halt, courtesy of Mother Nature.
In addition, the vast majority of pickers who pick local crab meat all summer are here on six-month visas. They will all return to Mexico in the next couple of weeks. They will be back in early April for another picking season. We have nitrogen-frozen Maryland lump and jumbo lump crab meat to get us through the winter months.