Topline
President Joe Biden's first state dinner Thursday night features French President Emmanuel Macron, dozens of high-profile U.S. political figures and A-list names in entertainment and media, but the night's top drama might be on the dinner plate, after conservation groups and opponents of stricter lobster-fishing rules alike pushed back on the White House's decision to serve Maine lobster.
Freshly caught lobsters sit in a barrel aboard the boat of fisherman Andrew Gove in Penobscot Bay ... [+]
Key Facts
The formal dinner is the cornerstone of Macron's state visit to the U.S., which is the first of Biden's presidency and the first held since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The menu offers many of the finest foods the U.S. has to offer: An award-winning Oregon cheese plate, beef with shallot marmalade, and butter-poached Maine lobster served with American Osetra caviar.
But the presence of Maine lobster has drawn some environmental groups’ ire: Conservation consulting firm MRAG Americas, Inc., announced last month it was pulling sustainability certifications for lobsters caught in the Gulf of Maine over concerns the fishing lines used to connect undersea lobster traps to floating buoys can snag whales, contributing to a decline in the endangered North Atlantic right whale population.
Gib Brogan, campaign director of the Oceana conservation group, told the Wall Street Journal it's a "shock" the White House chose to serve lobster as the signature seafood dish, after two major seafood groups said Maine lobsters are not sustainable and Whole Foods said it would stop selling the crustaceans (Brogan suggested Gulf of Mexico shrimp as an alternative).
In recent years, federal regulators have proposed enacting stricter rules on the lobster industry, including asking lobstermen to use fewer fishing lines and weaker rope that can break apart if whales get entangled.
The Maine Lobstermen's Association and Maine lawmakers have pushed back in court, arguing the decision threatens the livelihoods of thousands of lobstermen and could put a dent in an industry critical for Maine's economy—which reeled in nearly $725 million last year.
Some Maine politicians used Macron’s visit to urge Biden to claw back his proposed lobstering rules: Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) tweeted, “If the Biden White House can prioritize purchasing 200 Maine lobsters for a fancy dinner, @POTUS should also take the time to meet with the Maine lobstermen his administration is currently regulating out of business.”
Big Number
200. That's how many lobsters the White House shipped in from Maine for the event. They arrived Tuesday.
Crucial Quote
“The fact that this is a dinner for France, which is famous for its culinary expertise, is an indication that you can’t go wrong serving Maine lobster, no matter what the circumstances,” Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) told the Journal. King has been one of the leading voices opposing the removal of a sustainability label for Maine lobster.
Key Background
The dinner comes after the business portion of the state visit, which involved top-level discussions on issues like climate change and the war in Ukraine. Biden raised some eyebrows at a joint news conference with Macron on Thursday, where he said he would be "willing to talk" with Russian President Vladimir Putin—alongside other NATO allies—if Putin showed an interest in ending the war, but Biden noted, "He hasn’t done that yet.” The state dinner of official state visits is famed for its pageantry, featuring formal dress, the best china and highest quality food, as the White House pulls out all the stops to impress foreign dignitaries that in the past have often included royalty. The first state dinner is generally recognized as having taken place in 1874, when President Ulysses S. Grant hosted Hawaiian King Kalākaua.
Tangent
Macron will have the chance to dine on more seafood Friday as he spends the day in New Orleans to promote the French language in Louisiana and recognize historic ties between the city and France. It will be the final stop on his three-day itinerary before returning to Paris.
Further Reading
Maine Lobster Controversy Pinches Biden’s State Dinner With Macron (Wall Street Journal)
