August 21, 2006
Look for the Maine label | Kristen Millar is behind the new Certified Maine Lobster program
By Kerry Elson
Summer is high season for lobster. With tourists clogging seaside shacks to dip hunks of the fresh, steamed crustaceans in melted butter, it should be nothing but sunshine these days for those in Maine's lobster trade. But Kristen Millar, executive director of the group charged with promoting Maine lobster, has been busy this summer playing defense and offense on behalf of the state's signature seafood.
First, Texas-based grocery chain Whole Foods Market in mid-June banned live lobster from its stores, citing concerns about inhumane treatment. That prompted Millar to fire off a press release that noted, "It would be hard to find anything more 'natural' in a natural food store than a live lobster." With the media froth surrounding the issue largely subsided, though, Millar now says the decision was "actually not a very big deal," because of the chain's relatively small customer base.
There's a bigger problem, though, that crops up every year ˆ a problem Millar calls "imposter lobsters." Restaurants and fish markets, she says, inappropriately call any and all lobster a Maine lobster, cashing in on both the state's image and the fishery management work of Maine's harvesters. In response, the Augusta-based Maine Lobster Promotion Council in July launched its biggest marketing effort to date, the Certified Maine Lobster campaign. Two years in the making, the project aims to differentiate Maine lobster from those caught or processed out-of-state by affixing every lobster caught in local waters with a plastic tag and two rubber claw-bands that read, "Certified Maine Lobster."
The tags are no gimmick, says Millar, 34, executive director of the MLPC. The council's market research shows that consumers already prefer lobster from Maine, she says. The idea to formally brand Maine lobsters came from Millar, a Freeport native who's been with the council for three years and recently received her business degree from Boston University. "If you can't differentiate, you can't market," she says. "We didn't have a brand that we could differentiate. This [campaign] gives our marketing efforts teeth because otherwise we're just promoting the general concept of lobster."
Creating the brand required MLPC to make a big investment, though. Its two-year market research project cost $75,000 alone, funded with a grant from the Maine Technology Institute. While Millar can't estimate how much the group will spend on the tagging campaign, she says it's one of the biggest initiatives yet for the 15-year-old organization that was created by the Legislature to market lobster to chefs, retailers and consumers ˆ a task that, until the new certification plan, had consisted mostly of culinary education programs. The council now operates independently of the state, funded primarily through annual fees collected from lobstermen licenses. A council of nine lobster harvesters, dealers and members of the public work with Millar to ensure that the council represents industry concerns.
And it's industry cooperation that Millar now needs to roll out the campaign. Last month, she asked the state's 300 licensed lobster dealers to sign a pledge saying they'll enforce the campaign. Dealers' retail clients also have to sign the document, pledging not to label lobster from out-of-state as Maine lobster. The council already has received some support: On the launch date, the state's three largest dealers had already signed up, Millar says.
Not everyone is enthusiastic, however. The campaign has caused grumbling among lobstermen in other New England states, who say it's just a marketing ploy. But if Maine's reputation for lobster is to survive in the market, Millar says, the industry needs to be aggressive. "We have this brand. It's arguably the lobster industry's greatest asset and we're not promoting it," Millar says. "The program allows those who make their living in lobster to leverage that asset."
First, Texas-based grocery chain Whole Foods Market in mid-June banned live lobster from its stores, citing concerns about inhumane treatment. That prompted Millar to fire off a press release that noted, "It would be hard to find anything more 'natural' in a natural food store than a live lobster." With the media froth surrounding the issue largely subsided, though, Millar now says the decision was "actually not a very big deal," because of the chain's relatively small customer base.
There's a bigger problem, though, that crops up every year ˆ a problem Millar calls "imposter lobsters." Restaurants and fish markets, she says, inappropriately call any and all lobster a Maine lobster, cashing in on both the state's image and the fishery management work of Maine's harvesters. In response, the Augusta-based Maine Lobster Promotion Council in July launched its biggest marketing effort to date, the Certified Maine Lobster campaign. Two years in the making, the project aims to differentiate Maine lobster from those caught or processed out-of-state by affixing every lobster caught in local waters with a plastic tag and two rubber claw-bands that read, "Certified Maine Lobster."
The tags are no gimmick, says Millar, 34, executive director of the MLPC. The council's market research shows that consumers already prefer lobster from Maine, she says. The idea to formally brand Maine lobsters came from Millar, a Freeport native who's been with the council for three years and recently received her business degree from Boston University. "If you can't differentiate, you can't market," she says. "We didn't have a brand that we could differentiate. This [campaign] gives our marketing efforts teeth because otherwise we're just promoting the general concept of lobster."
Creating the brand required MLPC to make a big investment, though. Its two-year market research project cost $75,000 alone, funded with a grant from the Maine Technology Institute. While Millar can't estimate how much the group will spend on the tagging campaign, she says it's one of the biggest initiatives yet for the 15-year-old organization that was created by the Legislature to market lobster to chefs, retailers and consumers ˆ a task that, until the new certification plan, had consisted mostly of culinary education programs. The council now operates independently of the state, funded primarily through annual fees collected from lobstermen licenses. A council of nine lobster harvesters, dealers and members of the public work with Millar to ensure that the council represents industry concerns.
And it's industry cooperation that Millar now needs to roll out the campaign. Last month, she asked the state's 300 licensed lobster dealers to sign a pledge saying they'll enforce the campaign. Dealers' retail clients also have to sign the document, pledging not to label lobster from out-of-state as Maine lobster. The council already has received some support: On the launch date, the state's three largest dealers had already signed up, Millar says.
Not everyone is enthusiastic, however. The campaign has caused grumbling among lobstermen in other New England states, who say it's just a marketing ploy. But if Maine's reputation for lobster is to survive in the market, Millar says, the industry needs to be aggressive. "We have this brand. It's arguably the lobster industry's greatest asset and we're not promoting it," Millar says. "The program allows those who make their living in lobster to leverage that asset."
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments