Fishing and checking the system 



There is one problem common to all crab-shedding opera- 

 tions: They take a lot of time. Even in small operations, 

 crab-shedding demands attention seven days a week, 

 around the clock. 



You must catch or buy your peelers. You must cull out 

 dead crabs and discarded shells, sort peelers by stages, and 

 check the shedding trays at least every six hours for soft 

 crabs. 



Timing is important. Many large crab-shedding opera- 

 tions check for soft crabs every four hours, to prevent them 

 from hardening to the "paper-shell" stage. Soft crabs must 

 be given an hour or two to firm up, then they should be 

 removed from the water and cooled to stop their shells from 

 hardening any further. 



Preparing soft crabs for market 



North Carolina shedders who can reliably produce high- 

 quality soft crabs never have trouble selling their product, 

 Wescott says. But many buyers are very particular about 

 the condition and packaging of the crabs they choose. 



Restaurants, which buy many of the soft crabs shed in 

 North Carolina, usually insist on nice-looking crabs with at 

 least one claw each, and most want crabs packaged in uni- 

 form sizes, according to a prescribed method of boxing and 

 wrapping. Most buyers prefer live soft crabs, chilled and 

 dormant and packed one layer deep in shallow boxes. Many, 

 however, will accept fresh-frozen soft-shell crabs, if they are 

 properly cleaned, frozen and packaged. (See story begin- 

 ning on page 9 for information about cleaning.) 



Live soft crabs sold to distributors in North Carolina, 

 Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey and New York must meet 

 standard packaging and quality requirements. 



"Stills," or crabs that die during or after shedding, are 

 not shipped with live crabs. They are salable only if cleaned 

 and frozen promptly. Stills with an odor should be dis- 

 carded. 



As with other seafoods, commercial freezing equipment, 

 operating at —20 degrees Fahrenheit, produces the best 

 product. But these freezers are also too expensive for most 

 small shedding operations. Wescott says that some crab- 

 shedders do use household freezers, which will hold crabs at 

 around degrees Fahrenheit. 



Anyone can learn 



Although these techniques take some time to master, 

 Wescott says that most anyone can learn them. And a 

 fisherman handy enough with tools to keep a boat in good 

 repair can usually save some money by doing the carpentry, 

 plumbing and electrical work himself. 



Wescott adds that, while crab-shedding is no get-rich- 

 quick scheme, a strong market, respectable profits and 

 relatively low start-up costs have made the business attrac- 

 tive. 



"There's room for a lot more crab-shedding operations 

 before we reach the limits of the market," he says. "And a 

 lot of people who fish for hard crabs could be sorting out the 

 peelers they catch, and getting more for their effort." 



[// you want to know more about setting up a crab- 

 shedding operation, contact Wayne Wescott at the 

 Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service office in the N. C. 

 Marine Resources Center on Roanoke Island (P.O. 

 Box 699, Manteo, N.C. 27954). His telephone is (919) 

 473-3937. 



— Neil Caudle 



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