RICHMOND – A new local lobster processing facility that uses a new method for separating lobster meat from the shell could help further strengthen Maine’s lobster industry and help improve marketing of the state’s signature crustacean, according to state and industry officials.

The Shucks Maine Lobster facility, which began full operations in April, is only the third lobster-processing facility in the state, which used to be dotted with lobster canning facilities before technology improvements made shipments of fresh lobster possible, according to industry officials. The demand for processed lobster meat also has grown, however, as the number of canneries in Maine has shrunk. As a result, between 60 percent and 70 percent of the lobster caught in Maine now is shipped to Canada for processing, officials said.

On Wednesday Gov. John Baldacci visited the new hydrostatic pressure processing facility, which uses a high-pressure water system to kill bacteria and pathogens and to separate lobster meat virtually intact from the shell. Unlike other processing facilities, which cook the lobster before it’s packaged, the Richmond plant freezes, vacuum-packs and ships raw lobster meat, allowing customers to cook it as they see fit and sparing them the messy job of picking meat from the shell.

The facility is the first of its kind in the United States, according to the Maine Lobster Promotion Council.

“No chef buys steak with the horns still on,” John Hathaway, president of Shucks Maine Lobster, said Wednesday. “When you want the freshest lobster in the world, you want fresh, raw Maine lobster meat.”

Kristen Millar, executive director of the state Lobster Promotion Council, said Wednesday that the facility helps diversify the offerings of Maine lobster to the marketplace and helps strengthen the branding of Maine lobster.

Lobster caught in Maine and then shipped to Canada for processing is distributed worldwide as a product of Canada, she said, which waters down the marketing power of Maine lobster as a desirable brand. The Richmond facility, she said, helps to preserve the status of locally caught lobster as a specialty Maine product.

“It gives us more opportunity to brand our lobster as Maine lobster,” Millar said.

Some consumers still will have a preference for pre-cooked canned lobster, Millar said, and others will want live lobster. The raw lobster shipped by Shucks, however, has a shelf life of 30 days, which is 10 times longer than the shelf life of lobster that is shipped live and then cooked by the consumer.

“It’s got a good shelf life,” Dr. Robert Bayer, executive director of the University of Maine’s Lobster Institute, said Wednesday. “It cooks up almost as if you’re cooking it fresh. It tastes pretty good.”

Gov. Baldacci said Wednesday that the facility shows that Maine can be a leader in technological development and in finding innovative ways to create new jobs. Shucks Maine Lobster is a certified participant in the state’s Pine Tree Zone economic development program and has benefited from market research funded by the state.

Maine is by far the nation’s biggest lobster-producing state, accounting for 80 percent of America’s landings. Though recorded landings in Maine were down last year, from 70 million pounds in 2004 to nearly 63 million pounds, the value of lobster caught in Maine in 2005 reached an all-time high of $290 million.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.