Louisiana elected officials are rallying to find solutions to help protect the state’s shrimp fishermen from cheap foreign shrimp that critics say is depriving shrimpers of their livelihood and undermining public health.
Last month, the state Legislature’s Seafood Safety Task Force met to consider ways to stem the influx of shrimp from China and other nations amid concerns that the imported seafood may contain impurities that pose risks to the health of Louisianans. In addition, Gov. John Bel Edwards has requested that the U.S. secretary of commerce declare an emergency disaster declaration to provide assistance to shrimp fishermen.
“We can’t make a living anymore,” Acy Cooper, president of the Louisiana Shrimp Association, told the Louisiana Record. “It’s a $1.2 billion industry we are about to lose because of imported shrimp.”
An increase in the testing of imported seafood, which some studies have found to contain illegal antibiotics, could provide some benefits to the domestic shrimp industry, according to Cooper. So would legislation that imposes fines on restaurants that fail to disclose to patrons that they are serving imported shrimp, he said.
A 2019 law requires restaurants to make such disclosures, but Cooper said there has been no pushback for restaurants that don’t follow the rule.
“We found out there have been 2,600 violations and that no fines or any fees were taken,” he said, adding that he expects the state Legislature to pass legislation next year requiring fines for restaurants that break the rules..
Currently, local shrimpers are earning 65 cents per pound for the largest shrimp they catch – a commodity they used to sell for more than $4 per pound, according to Cooper.
“We have boats tied up (on docks) all across this state,” he said. “It’s terrible right now. … With inflation and the high price of fuel, there’s no way we can overcome this situation without somebody stepping in.”
The Florida-based Southern Shrimp Alliance is also urging governors of Gulf and southeastern states to request federal relief funds for shrimpers.
“The global supply of predominantly farm-raised shrimp has reached record highs and has far outstripped global demand,” the alliance said in an August letter. “U.S. imports of frozen warm-water shrimp nearly doubled from 2013 to 2021 to an unprecedented level of 1.8 billion pounds. U.S. inventories of shrimp are overwhelmed, driving prices paid to shrimp fishermen to record lows that cannot cover the costs of a shrimp fishing trip. …”
U.S. Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana has co-authored a bipartisan bill he said would keep unsafe foreign shrimp – or shrimp caught through illegal fishing practices – from reaching American consumers.
“The legislation also builds upon Graves’ previously successful efforts to give the U.S. Department of Agriculture the authority to purchase domestic shrimp to supply our schools, food banks and disaster relief programs,” a news release from Graves’ office states.
In the state Senate, a resolution passed in June directs the Louisiana Department of Health to take action to protect Louisiana residents from health hazards associated with potentially tainted seafood and to fully enforce the state’s food safety laws.
“The Legislature of Louisiana is concerned about the continued presence of certain chemical, bacterial or biotoxin contaminants in imported seafood that put its citizens at risk for serious food-borne illnesses,” the resolution says.