Lobster industry files lawsuits over do-not-eat and defamation claims

The Maine lobster industry is suing the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California for defamation after it recommended that customers avoid buying a variety of lobster mostly harvested in their state. Seafood Watch, a conservation program run by the aquarium, put lobster from the US and Canada on its list of seafood to avoid due to the threat posed to rare whales by entanglement in fishing gear used to harvest American lobster. The lobster industry argues that the recommendation relies on bad science and incorrectly portrays lobster fishing as a threat to the whales.