Maine lobstermen sue California group that told consumers to avoid lobster

The Maine Lobstermen’s Association and others filed suit Monday against a California-based foundation that accused the industry of contributing to the deaths of endangered right whales. The federal lawsuit says the Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation made false statements and misled consumers by giving Maine lobster a rating that directed consumers to avoid buying it. The suit is in response to a September decision by the aquarium’s Seafood Watch program to give Maine lobster a “red” rating, which alleged that the gear used by lobstermen endangers right whales.There are only about 340 right whales left and the company states on its website that “entanglement in gear using vertical lines is the leading cause of injury and death to these whales.” Yet lobstermen say no whale deaths have ever been attributed to Maine lobster gear and that the last documented entanglement was nearly 20 years ago.