Posted on 04/12/2025 5:10:47 AM PDT by Libloather
Shrimpers along the Gulf Coast say they need more help from the federal government with cheap shrimp imports from countries like Ecuador, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam driving down local demand.
With reciprocal tariffs on imports from those countries on hold for 90 days, shrimpers are left wondering if they will get a lifeline they say they desperately need. Some shrimp farmers are ready to push for measures like capping imports at 25%.
Rodney Olander with the Louisiana Shrimp Task Force has been coasting the gulf coast waters for shrimp for more than 40 years.
Shrimp season is just a month away. But Rodney said the shrimp industry has been suffering for years. Now he's working with the Trump administration, hoping to save his business.
"We need to put a cap on the amount of shrimp that comes into the country," Rodney said. "You're going to have a glut of shrimp on the market and our price will never rebound. So we're hoping again that with these tariffs, maybe that will turn things around. That's the only thing we got to hang our hat on right now. We're losing our industry."
According to NOAA Fisheries, between 2021 and 2024, the U.S. spent between $6 and $8 billion dollars a year on shrimp from other countries. Making it the top seafood import.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxbusiness.com ...
I’m sitting on a pier right now in Grand Isle, Louisiana watching shrimp boats out on the horizon do their thing.
This article was like a breath of fresh air. Have you noticed how the powers that be are saturating all media with breathless prose about how bad the tariffs are for [fill in the blank]. The are so desperately searching for a fable that will resonate with Americans.
Yup. Much to-do today about the Brits nationalizing their steel industry after the Chinese owner shut it down. What allowed the U.S. steel industry to survive under a similar onslaught of foreign competition was tariffs. The NYT would be collectively boiled in oil before they reported that.
American shrimps are pretty tasty.
—
Yes, they are but they do not produce the quantity the market demands - likely due to the turtle exclusion panels, the highly regulated nets size, and limited time to fish per state and federal regulations.
Only a fool would purchase contaminated farm raised seafood. Fixed
US shrimp boats are mostly right out of the early 20th century, as are the onboard storage & handling. Primitive.
Fair enough.
From anywhere.
It’s just that the horror stories I’ve heard about third world pollution and sewage....... ***ugh!***
That’s why I grow my own garlic. Grows great around here i get more than enough for us and to share.
Same applies to the farmed salmon sold in American groceries.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.