ORONO, Maine — U.S. consumers are willing to pay more for lobster harvested using ropeless fishing technology designed to reduce whale entanglement risks, according to new University of Maine research.

A study led by Qiujie “Angie” Zheng, associate professor of business analytics in the University of Maine’s Maine Business School, found that consumers are willing to pay an average of $3.42 more for a lobster roll made with lobster harvested using ropeless fishing technology when presented with information on animal welfare.

The research explored how consumers might respond if conditions necessitate ropeless technology to be adopted more broadly in the future. Zheng said the findings are not intended to suggest Maine’s lobster industry should change its current practices.

Maine’s lobster industry has implemented whale-protection measures for decades, including weak links, sinking lines and reduced vertical line requirements aimed at lowering entanglement risks. The fishery supplies roughly 90% of the nation’s lobster and remains one of Maine’s most recognizable economic and cultural drivers.

The North Atlantic right whale is one of the world’s most endangered large whale species, with an estimated population of 356 whales and fewer than 100 reproductive-age females.

Traditional lobster gear uses vertical lines connecting traps to surface buoys, which regulators and researchers have sought to modify in order to reduce entanglement risks for large whales. Federal regulators and environmental groups have debated the extent to which Maine lobster gear contributes to right whale deaths, though the industry has faced increasing pressure to reduce potential risks.

While existing protections are already in place within Maine’s fishery, Zheng said consumers may also play a role in bearing the cost of whale conservation through their purchasing decisions.

“Right whale conservation is a collective effort. In addition to the fishermen, regulators and scientists, consumers play a role, so we hope this research helps understand consumer preferences and evaluations,” Zheng said. “These findings do not suggest that Maine’s lobster industry needs to change its current practices. Rather, they provide insight into how consumers might respond if ropeless technology were adopted.”

Zheng collaborated with Kanae Tokunaga from the Gulf of Maine Research Institute and Rodolfo Nayga and Wei Yang from Texas A&M University to explore consumer preferences and demand perspective of ropeless technology, as well as marketing and communication strategies surrounding the gear.

Researchers tested how information about whale conservation, animal welfare and Maine’s lobster industry shaped consumer willingness to pay more for lobster harvested using ropeless technology. Messaging focused on whale welfare and entanglement impacts proved most effective at increasing support for ropeless technology, with consumers willing to pay more.

However, this was further varied by consumers' attitudes toward the environment and animal welfare, as well as their prior knowledge of right whale entanglement and ropeless technology, Zheng said.

"The results provide a baseline for considering different perspectives. With four treatments, including the control, we can see how different types of information influence consumer perspectives,” she said.

Zheng said she hopes the research will contribute valuable insights to Maine’s seafood sector about how consumers respond to different marketing approaches and sustainability messaging as environmental concerns increasingly influence food purchasing behaviors.

“We are providing a base for the community to assess the overall economic feasibility," Zheng said. “I’m always trying to learn from fishermen and the fishing community because they make their living from a very complicated natural system, and they know it so well.”

Findings from the study were published in the journal Marine Resource Economics.