Eatery Probed Over Its Way of Calming Lobsters

Charlotte's Legendary Lobster Pound apparently used marijuana
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 22, 2018 11:37 AM CDT
State Probes Eatery That Gave Pot to Lobsters
A rare bright orange lobster shares the tank with regular lobsters in a seafood restaurant.   (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

State health inspectors are investigating a Maine lobster restaurant that tried to mellow out lobsters with marijuana, the AP reports. The Portland Press Herald reports Charlotte's Legendary Lobster Pound in Southwest Harbor remains open but has stopped allowing customers to request meat from lobsters sedated with marijuana. Owner Charlotte Gill is a state-licensed medical marijuana caregiver.

Gill said Friday she had started offering "smoked" lobster meat recently and hopes to resume sales by mid-October. Maine Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Emily Spencer wouldn't say whether the state had asked Gill to halt such sales. It's unknown whether pot smoke actually calms lobsters or has any effect on their meat. "The process is for the physical comfort of the lobster, not the consumer," says Gill on her Facebook page. (In related news, President Trump's tariff war may hurt the lobster business.)

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