New study says consumers may pay more for lobster caught with ropeless technology

WMTW-TV8 • May 25, 2026

A new study has found consumers are willing to pay over $3 more per lobster roll if the meat was harvested using ropeless technology. The study, led by University of Maine business school associate professor Angie Zheng, surveyed 2,000 people across the United States. Traditional lobstering methods use ropes to connect the trap on the seafloor with the buoy on the surface. However, those ropes may be harmful, even deadly, to the endangered North Atlantic right whale. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association says entanglements with fishing gear are the leading cause of death for the right whale. There are fewer than 400 North Atlantic right whales left.