Pandalus Borealis…. it’s got me thinking.

Hi, it’s Cal, and I’m back. Thankfully, we’ve gone from arctic cold to mud season here in Cundy’s Harbor. I’ve been thinking a lot about shrimp lately. Not just because we’ve been busy with the launch of our latest product: the Shrimp Puffin. But it’s the story of the Maine shrimp industry I am pondering today. Our unusually cold winter has been a factor in a very successful shrimping season here on Maine’s coast. Shrimp love the cold! So there is an abundance of them this year. And due to the fact that Maine regulates the catch of shrimp each year, once the limit on catches is reached, the season closes, assuring that overfishing will not occur as it did in the 1970s.
Furthermore, shrimp fishermen now use special excluders that reduce bycatch (the unwanted marine species caught during the commercial harvesting for a specific creature), in trawl nets. So we can be assured of continued enjoyment of delectably sweet crustaceans for generations to come, while still protecting other species.

Pandalus Borealis may be small, but they are big on flavor, and are often preferred for that reason over their larger shrimp cousins. And here in Maine, it is not unusual to see them sold from a seafood truck on the side of a road. Although it’s a bit of work for us Mainers to shell them, our customers get to enjoy them with a minimal amount of preparation.

I’d love to hear from those of you who have tried our Shrimp Puffin. Isn’t it a great way to usher in spring?