Some Costco stores have been able to find a supplier of these, as a few have been spotted carrying the massive claws of these lobsters.
In the market for some gigantic lobster claws? Costco might be the place for you.
The claws vary in size, but usually weigh somewhere in the range of 2 to 7 pounds. It’s mainly been folks across California reporting on the claws, so for now, that seems to be where they are sold. For example, the above lobster claw photo from Instagrammer @julesfood came from a Costco near Newport Beach, while the below Instagram photo was tagged in the Oakland, California area.
Users on Reddit have also noted the humongous claws being sold, with posts going back as far as mid-January of 2019.
“The biggest lobster claw I’ve ever seen” from r/mildlyinteresting
Some commenters questioned whether selling the lobsters were illegal. If they’re being packed and shipped from Maine, though, it seems to be okay. In 2011, state legislators passed laws rolling back regulations on lobster processors, allowing them to sell the oversized lobsters. On average, about 1 percent of lobsters shipped in from places like Canada can be oversized, weighing up to 15 pounds. The tail meat is usually converted into lobster products you’d find in grocery stores, but it seems like these claws can make it to grocery stores like Costco.
