Worm shortage means rising bait costs for fishermen
By Scott Calvert
A shortage of the big, fat worms called nightcrawlers — a popular bait with freshwater anglers in the U.S. — has pushed up prices nationwide and temporarily wiped out some merchants’ stock at the height of the summer fishing season.
The culprit is bad weather in Ontario, the Canadian province where nightcrawlers are handpicked in the wild and shipped south by the millions. First, the long winter delayed picking from March to May. Then a dry May kept the moisture-loving creatures burrowed deep underground.
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This spring’s dearth of Canadian nightcrawlers, the worst in 26 years, according to suppliers, has caused havoc with supply chains, affecting mom-and-pop bait shops and nationwide sellers. Some stores have raised prices, while others have held the line. At the same time, some bait shops say they have noticed little change in supply or price.
DMF Bait Co., a major wholesaler in Waterford, Mich., had to pay its Canadian suppliers double the usual price, said Chief Executive Dan Beaudoin. Even so, the company couldn’t fill all its orders for the first time in its 37-year history. Though the crimp in supply has eased, he said his company is still paying 80% more than usual.
DMF has raised prices on its customers, which include Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE:WMT) and other national chains, by about 20%.
