Crabs from the sounds and intracoastal waterway are North Carolina’s largest seafood industry with an overall value last year of $22.8 million. That’s a third of the state’s entire commercial seafood catch of $73 million of fish and shellfish in 2012.
In the mid-1990s, Mattamuskeet was one of about 45 crab processors in the state. Now there are 10.
Why? Imported crabmeat.
Ninety-one percent of all the seafood Americans consume comes from overseas, according to the federal government. Crab is no different. While statistics aren’t easily available for the handpicked fresh crabmeat that Mattamuskeet produces, 99 percent of the 66 million pounds of canned crabmeat sold in the United States in 2011 was imported, according to numbers shared by the National Fisheries Institute, a trade association based in Virginia.
It is imported from countries such as China, Indonesia, Venezuela and Mexico.
Imported crabmeat can be more appealing to some consumers and chefs. It tends to be whiter in appearance, has less shell and a mild flavor – an asset for chefs who want to add their own seasonings.
North Carolina crabmeat, by contrast, is grayer, can have more shell and has the classic sweet, briny flavor of crab.
The Carawans [Mattamuskeet Seafood in Swan Quarter] charge $22 a pound for jumbo lump crabmeat and $12 a pound for backfin meat. But there’s a limit to how much they can charge because imported crabmeat is cheaper.
I mistakenly bought a pound of Chinese crab earlier this summer. We made sure to buy North Carolina crab meat for "John's gluten free crabcakes" last month. The Chinese crab is still in the frig but I'll probably cook it this week.
