A serious crunch is hitting the crabmeat market — and it’s happening fast. Over the past two weeks, the price of fresh Venezuelan jumbo lump has surged 30%, and it’s not slowing down anytime soon.
Why? Catches in Lake Maracaibo have dropped off sharply, right as summer demand is reaching its peak. And normally, pasteurized Indonesian product would help balance the market — but thanks to the trade war and the tariff confusion earlier this year, a six-week pause in Indonesian shipments has created a severe shortage of pasteurized jumbo lump, super lump, and lump.
Now, all eyes are on August 15 — that’s when Venezuela’s crabbing season shuts down for conservation. In past years, we’ve just barely made it to Labor Day with fresh Venz still in stock. This year, though, we expect to run out somewhere between August 25 and August 30.
There is good news: Fresh Mexican jumbo lump starts flowing in this weekend, just in time. Mexico’s high season runs through early December, and with a little luck, they’ll ramp up production enough to cover nearly half of our weekly needs.
We’re watching this one closely. If you haven’t secured your crabmeat for August, now’s the time.