P.E.I. Lobster Marketing Board hiring expert

The P.E.I. Lobster Marking Board is hiring afull-time marketing expert to help the fisherman raise the status of P.E.I. lobster.

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"There's a lot of things that are specific to P.E.I.that are high quality itemsand lobster is another one. That's why we're hiring the professionals we need to get that done right," said Charlie McGeoghegan, chair of the P.E.I. Lobster Marketing Board.

The board hopes the marketing expert can help with day-to-day marketing and add to the advertising campaigns the board has already done.

The board has been collecting a two-cent-per-poundlevy for advertising purposessince the spring of 2016McGeoghegansaid they received approximately $300,000 last year and roughly the same amountagain so farthis year.

McGeogheganestimates the board has spent"a little over $100,000" in 2017 to market P.E.I. lobster, sponsoring the lobster festivals in Souris, P.E.I., and Summerside, P.E.I., preparing advertisements that will be seen ontractor-trailers and other announcements yet to come.

P.E.I. creating a 'niche'

"P.E.I. is the only province that has put theirmoney where their mouth is to market lobster," McGeoghegansaid.

He said he had thought about whether it would be better for P.E.I. to pool resources with Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, if they had a levy, but has had a change of heart.

"At first I had thought that it would be good to pool it together, but when the other provinces aren't paying then I think it's better for us to do what we're doing and create a niche," he said.

P.E.I. first in Canada tocreate levy

P.E.I. lobster fisherman are the first in Canada to to create a levy to market their product, voting last year to introduce the two-cent-per-pound tax.

"The fisherman on P.E.I. voted to create the levy and to promote Prince Edward Island lobster since then we've been focused on that," McGeoghegansaid.

"We want to make sure the things we do invest in are good and provide profits back to the fisherman that's what we're in the business of doing here."

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