Lobster Prices Are On The Rise Just In Time For Peak Season

Nothing says summer like cracking open a beautiful lobster shell with a beer and good friends by your side. But here's a news flash for all of you crustacean cravers: The price of lobster has been steadily rising since 2012. Already, prices of lobster per pound are at least $1 to $2 more than last year.

According to Business Insider, warmer water temperature cause lobsters to molt earlier in the year, creating a lobster boom by the time fishing season starts. In 2012, the year of the last East Coast "ocean heat wave," lobster abundance caused the lowest prices for the popular shellfish since the 1930s, according to University of Maine research professor Richard Wahle. However, since then, Atlantic Ocean waters have cooled off.The serious cold snap in New England this year will cause even more damage: Colder water temperatures + a predicted later molting season = fewer lobsters and significantly higher prices.

Researchers predict that molting season will occur in late July or early August, which will create a ripple effect in supply and demand internationally. This may not be a fluke occurrence, either. With fewer lobster larvae in the waters around New England, this could be a blow to the previously booming lobster business, according to Wahle.