Common Name	Jonah Crab	Conservation Notes
Scientific Name	Chinoectes borealis	Sustainability Ratings/Certifications
Market Names	Atlantic Dungeness	Buying Tips
Sushi Name	Kani	Health/Nutrition

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JONAH CRAB MARKET ALERT - updated June 2011

Fishing for this increasingly popular crab, which is sometimes dubbed the Atlantic Dungeness, was slower than normal in June, a month that typically produces landings of about 800,000 pounds. After running through his 1,800 pots, one Massachusetts fishermen reportedly returned with just 700 pounds of crab.  As is the case with most crab, Jonah prices are at record highs.  Processors in Massachusetts, which produces about 60 percent of all the Jonah crab catch (Rhode Island is the other big producer), were selling leg meat for $14-$15/lb., well above the $12/lb. Jonah meat typically fetches. Cooked whole claws and arms, meanwhile, were bringing $9/lb. for unscored product.

While fishing in early June was spotty, the high crab prices could attract more effort into the Jonah fishery. Since there’s no fixed season and the Jonah fishery, which produces landings of about 8 or 9 million pounds a year, is not managed by quota, getting a fix on future supplies is at best a guessing game. One wild card may be Canada. There’s an offshore Jonah quota of about 1.5 million pounds that hasn’t been fished in years. Given the crazy crab prices these days, the Canadians may decide fishing for Jonah is now worth their while.  

Conservation Notes

Advantages: Jonah crab once annoyed lobstermen by taking the bait, but over time they have become a valuable directed fishery. They are found in the western North Atlantic, with the primary source in the northeastern United States. Most Jonah crabs are caught with pots and traps and have relatively little impact on the marine habitat. The crab’s vulnerability to fishing pressure is considered neutral based on its behavior and characteristics, according to a Seafood Watch report by the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Challenges: Jonah crab are fished in a directed fishery and they are also landed as bycatch in the lobster fishery.   There is no quota, nor is there a management plan in place for the fishery. The Jonah crab fishery only emerged relatively recently, so little scientific assessment has been conducted. North Atlantic right whales will infrequently get caught accidentally in lobster fishing gear, making that an environmental concern for the Jonah crab fishery, according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Sustainability Ratings and Certifications

	Seafood Watch	SeaChoice	FishWise	Blue Ocean Institute	New England Aquarium	Marine Stewardship Council
U.S. Trap/Pot-caught	Good Alternative	Some Concerns	Good Alternative		B List

Rating Explanation

Seafood Watch's rating for Jonah crab is a single assessment for the fishery.

Buying Tips

• Jonah crab are fished year-round, but landings tend to be slightly heavier in the fall
• Flaky white Jonah crabmeat has a sweet taste and is available fresh year-round
• Cooked Jonah crab comes in packs of leg, body, or combination meat and the whole claws sold separately
• Jonah “snap-‘n-eats” are pre-cooked, pre-cracked crab claws
• This crabmeat tends to be consistent because there are only a few processors for this fishery
• The relatively large claws can be an affordable substitute for stone crab claws, with cooked Jonah ones selling for about half the price
• Jonah crabmeat can be substituted or blended with more expensive crabmeat to make value-added seafood products such as crab cakes and stuffed flounder
• Check the leg-to-body meat ratio periodically since that impacts the price of Jonah crab

Nutrition and Health

Acknowledgements

• Seafood Watch by Monterey Bay Aquarium
• Blue Ocean Institute
• SeaChoice
• www.livestrong.com