Garbo Lobster facilities in Connecticut.
Lobster processor to close its plant in Connecticut
UNITED STATES
Friday, January 18, 2019, 02:50 (GMT + 9)
Garbo Lobster, a company that has been operating for more than three decades in southeastern Connecticut and which supplies lobsters around the world, will close its Groton headquarters.
Garbo Lobster Co Inc at 415 Thames St, Groton, CT 06340, USA
That is what the parent company East Coast Seafood Group reported, which assures it is working with impacted employees at the packing facility.
The firm said it will be absorbing benefit costs of covered employees for a period of time, offering severance to each employee affected, and helping them get other job opportunities.
Garbo Lobster also has facilities in Maine and Nova Scotia, Canada, and they explained that the lobster packing operation will be absorbed into the company’s other plants.
“East Coast Seafood Group and Garbo Lobster thank the hardworking employees at the facility and the Groton, CT community for the support over the many years,” the company reported in a statement.
According to Garbo Lobster General Manager Chris Brown, the company lost a significant portion of business due a Chinese tariff on American products that includes live seafood.
"We experienced an immediate shut off of business,” Brown said to NBC Connecticut. “We were shipping anywhere 100- to 150,000 pounds a week on a given timeframe to China, however now that has dropped down to nothing,” he explained.
“As was predicted during our August visit to Garbo, local lobster consumers and restaurants in our region, as well as lobstermen throughout the northeast, will now be moving their business with Garbo to wholesalers in Canada," Congressman Joe Courtney reported.
"This trade war is causing real-life harm to American workers and our Administration needs a much more measured approach to advocate for real reform of unfair trade arrangements,” he added.
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