Lobster fishermen, processors agree to deal

Lobster fishermen in southeastern New Brunswick have accepted aprocessors' price proposal for their catch and say they will go fishing on Monday.

This means processors will pay $3 a pound for canners and $3.50 for market lobster.

In each case,it's extra 50 centsmore than what was offeredlast week 25 cents will come from the plants, and 25 cents will come from the Maritime Fishermen's Union, which the province allowed to extend its existing loan.

Those topped-up prices are capped, applying only to the first 15,000 pounds per fisherman. After that, it reverts to $2.50 for canners and$3 for market lobster, according to the CBC's Jacques Poitras.

The decisionwas madeat about 10 p.m. Friday after an hour of talks among an estimated 250 fishermen.

For a week, fishermen had beenprotesting outside processing plantsafter learning the plants were processingcheap American lobster.

Processorswon an injunctionto keep protesting fishermen off their property Thursday.

The price wasproposed at a meeting Fridayafternoon between two small committees representing each side.

Originally, fishermen had hoped for $4 per pound.

The plants had originally put $2.50 for canners and $3 for market lobster on the table.