Frozen lobsters live again, firm says

BOSTON – Call it cryonics for crustaceans.

A Connecticut company says its frozen lobsters sometimes come back to life when thawed.

Trufresh began freezing lobsters with a technique it used for years on salmon after an offhand suggestion by some workers. It found that some lobsters revived after their subzero sojourns.

Now, Trufresh is looking for partners to begin selling the lobsters commercially. The company was scheduled to attend the International Boston Seafood Show, which began Sunday, armed with video showing two undead lobsters squirming around after being frozen stiff in a minus-40 degree chemical brine for several minutes.

Company chairman Barnet L. Liberman acknowledged that its lobster testing is limited and only about 12 of roughly 200 healthy, hard-shell lobsters survived the freezing. In addition, the company hasn’t researched how long a frozen lobster can survive – overnight is the longest period so far.

Liberman emphasized the company’s goal isn’t to provide customers with lobsters that always come back to life. He just wants to supply tasty lobsters.