Three separate thefts in New England between November and December 2025 have occasioned diverse value losses in crabmeat and oysters, alongside $400,000 worth of lobster meat. 

A New York Post story of December 30 records full cages of oysters to have disappeared before the crab and lobster heists took place.

Firstly on November 22, an intruder in Falmouth, Maine took some 14 cages full of farmed oysters worth $20,000, inclusive of the cages.

Reporting the theft, Maine Marine Patrol’s sergeant Matthew Sinclair cited this as “devastating…for a small businessman.”

Then on December 2, a crab order left Lineage Logistics in Taunton, Massachusetts, some 255 km from Falmouth under fraudulent circumstances.

The final incident happened on December 12, again in Taunton, when a Costco stores-bound lobster meat shipment headed for Illinois and Minnesota turned fake.

Costco did not provide further information but the middleman who was to intercept the load said the culprit trucking company was an impersonator.

Such deliveries that fake legitimate trucking companies are one of two freight theft categories, the other being strategic theft via online purchases. This is according to the Transport Intermediaries Association’s president and CEO, Chris Burroughs.

Crustacean Meat Expensive

The shellfish thefts left no time to investigate their deliveries to federal eateries given their short shelf life, high demand and great value.

On average, U.S.’ lobster meat sells more expensively than most other lobster products – and is at par with tails. 

In December 2025, the average cost was between $49 and 75 a pound, applicable to pre-shucked (ready-to-cook) meat.

Lobster meat tail on the other hand is quite steep in value and typically sells in ounces rather than the conventional pound.

6-7 ounces of tail meat come cheapest, averaging around $35.73, while 16-20-ounce or pound equivalents call for at least $76.83.

In-between are 8-10 ounces, 10-12 ounces and 12-14 ounces, with the first offering the best value for money next to pounders.

Luckily, October though March marks the alternative spiny lobster season in California, a time that may relieve some of the costs. Although the western state cannot compare with New England as America’s main source of lobster, it offers cheaper rates. As such, below is a look at the federal lobster meat industry in terms of value.

United States Lobster Meat Value Statistics 

Lobster meat is a part and parcel of the crustacean-eating culture of the United States. According to IMARC Group, the total lobster market value in the U.S. was at $3.82 billion in 2024. The value partly owed to growing demand for convenient products such as lobster meat. 

Most lobster meat, inclusive of live lobster or other products, comes from 3 states. These include Maine (over 110.2 million pounds), Massachusetts (over 16.8 million pounds) and New Hampshire (over 5.7 million pounds) as of 2024. California comes sixth with 668, 882 pounds (2024).

How is price distribution among lobster products?

Lobster meat in the United States sells higher than pretty nearly all other niche products, far above live lobster. In end 2025, for example, live lobster averaged $20.82 a pound for 5-to-6-pounders while tails as high as $76.83 a pound. Lobster meat, on the other hand, fetches from an average $47 to $76 a pound. Costs for all lobster products nevertheless depreciate in the United States is summer (June-August). This is when high catch rates and molting bring prices at least 20% down from their peaks.