The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries has extended the West Coast rock lobster season following a plea by fishermen for the department to support workers and small-scale fishermen who have been affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
According to the department, “90 per cent of all rock lobster is exported to China.
“However, with the outbreak the export price for rock lobster has dramatically declined.
“We have decided to extend nearshore fishing in the Western Cape until June, and the offshore and Northern Cape fishing until September.”
The season has been extended in the hope that those most affected by the current drop in sales will have time to make up for their losses,” the department’s minister Barbara Creecy said. - Zoë van Rooyen
