Louisiana shrimpers say they’ve been stranded while lawmakers tread water

Local shrimpers have long expressed discontent with the fact that most of the shrimp eaten in Louisiana is imported. They cite studies that show foreign-farmed catch is likely contaminated with banned chemicals, yet restaurants and grocers continue to sell it.

As lawmakers struggle yet again to provide a solution, members of the shrimping industry say a state law approved four years ago to let consumers know when they’re buying foreign-sourced shrimp hasn’t been enforced.   

Millions of tourists and residents alike visit Louisiana restaurants for a taste of local seafood but are unknowingly eating imported fare, and most are unaware of the health risks, said Acy Cooper, a restaurant owner and president of the Louisiana Shrimp Association. 

Prices for Louisiana-caught shrimp have significantly declined because the market is flooded with imported catch, Cooper said. The current price of wild-caught Louisiana shrimp is $1.10 per pound — three times less than just a year ago.

While it might be great if the government banned imported seafood, Cooper said members of his industry know better than to make such huge demands that are unlikely to come to fruition.

The problem is easy to fix if lawmakers had the political will to do so, said Cooper, who describes it as an awareness issue that begins with truth in labeling.

“We know they’re dirty, full of contaminants,” Cooper said of foreign shrimp. “Yet here we are in 2023 and the government still hasn’t stepped up.” 

A 2020 LSU Agricultural Center study tested a variety of imported shrimp purchased from multiple locations in the Baton Rouge area and detected banned veterinary drugs in more than two-thirds of the samples. Researchers noted the prohibited chemicals can have severe adverse effects on humans. 

LSU’s findings weren’t exactly news as previous studies produced similar results. 

Seafood is the most common type of imported food linked to outbreaks, and the rate of imported seafood outbreaks is increasing, according to a Johns Hopkins University study.

Even shrimp laid out on ice at a grocery store might not be from Louisiana, Cooper said. Its label might read “Processed and packaged in Louisiana,” but the shrimp actually comes from Asia, he said. 

Consumers should look for something that explicitly indicates the shrimp was caught in Louisiana or caught in the Gulf of Mexico, Cooper said. It’s a big marketing point restaurants and stores will want to advertise if they really are using local seafood, he added.

State lawmakers passed a law in 2019 that required restaurants to put up signs and indicate on their menus if they’re selling imported shrimp or crawfish. It also prohibits the use of misleading labels. Violators can face a $50 fine for a first offense. 

But the law isn’t having much impact and fines are too low, Cooper said. 

The Louisiana Department of Health is in charge of enforcing the law, but during an April 26 hearing of the House Committee on Natural Resources, Cooper told lawmakers the agency hasn’t levied any fines over three years of enforcement. 

LDH spokesperson Kevin Litten told the Illuminator the agency hasn’t levied fines because the inspection process affords restaurants an opportunity to correct issues to avoid penalties. 

A bill Rep. Mack Cormier, D-Belle Chasse, sponsored this year would have increased fines for restaurants and retailers that don’t follow the labeling law to $1,000. Faced with opposition from the restaurant industry, Cormier’s proposal failed in committee. 

Louisiana Restaurant Association President Stan Harris told the committee the health department isn’t issuing fines because restaurants are following the law. There were a few dozen violations noted during inspections after the law first took effect, but those restaurants adjusted to comply with the law, he said.

“Blaming one section of the marketplace… seeking huge increases in fines and enforcement isn’t going to make their industry more successful,” Harris said.

The Senate Committee on Natural Resources approved a flurry of legislation Thursday to highlight the dangers of imported seafood, but shrimpers say it will do little to nothing to prevent or reduce health risks.

The proposals included four concurrent resolutions, each of which asks another governmental entity to do something about the problem. Unlike bills that create or change laws, resolutions often serve as formal requests or express sentiments but do not have the force of law. 

House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, R-Gonzales, sponsored House Concurrent Resolution 113, which points out how the United States continues to import more seafood each year, including 1.5 billion pounds of shrimp in 2019. The legislation asks Congress to ban imports of shrimp and crawfish, a request they’re unlikely to entertain as studies estimate up to 85% of the seafood Americans consume is foreign.

A measure from Rep. Ray Garofalo, R-Chalmette, narrows the issue to more viable solutions. House Concurrent Resolution 105 urges and requests the Louisiana Department of Health and U.S. Food and Drug Administration to expand testing of imported seafood. The resolution notes federal food regulators test only about 2% of the imported seafood for contaminants — far below the testing rates of other countries.

“We believe it’s a real public safety issue and it’s dangerous to the public to be eating these shrimp,” Garafalo said.

The other two resolutions ask Congress to levy tariffs on and expand testing of imported seafood. 

For now, shrimpers hope regulators will step up enforcement and testing measures on their own accord and hope more restaurants realize the benefits of using seafood caught in Louisiana.

“Our tourists have deep pockets, and they’re willing to pay for this stuff,” Cooper said. “No one’s coming here to eat shrimp from Vietnam or India. They want Louisiana (seafood). That’s what they’re expecting.”