Seafood Sectors - Shrimp
Shrimp Seafood Sector
Situation Overview
Shrimp, both farmed and wild, is arguably the most important seafood commodity traded in global markets. World shrimp production is approximately 6 million metric tons on an annual basis and 60 percent of this production enters world markets.
Shrimp fishing and farming represent important sources of employment in many developing countries and throughout the global supply chain. In major international markets shrimp is the leading seafood item sold and in the United States shrimp leads all seafoods in per capita consumption accounting for 25 percent of all seafood consumed.
While the global shrimp supply has increased in recent years, thanks largely to the growth in aquaculture production, the negative environmental impacts of shrimp fishing and farming have increased as well.
As major seafood buyers align with conservation organizations for guidance on sustainability issues shrimp suppliers will be called upon to demonstrate that their sources are sustainable or have initiated improvement steps to achieve sustainability. While Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) offer validation of sustainable practices in some areas, other issues remain which may impede market demand.
Key Conservation and Environmental Issues
Many tropical wild shrimp fisheries are unsustainable in their present form because of a variety of factors including: lack of adequate management, excess capacity, extreme (and usually undocumented) bycatch that often includes endangered species, habitat destruction, minimal use of turtle-excluder devices (TEDs) and bycatch reduction devices (BRDs). In addition, there is a lack of meaningful traceability and identification of shrimp fishing methods within the current shrimp supply chain.
On the farmed side, while the development of aquaculture standards and certification promises to improve sustainability opportunities to improve remain. For example, while shrimp farms are now moving toward certification shrimp feeds still contain fish from unknown and potentially unsustainable fisheries. In addition, while individual shrimp farms may be certified to a high standard if the entire region is not held to the same standard major environmental and disease problems are likely to occur as has happened with salmon farming in Chile. Social issues have also brought heavy criticism of shrimp processing practices and oversight in some countries.
Mechanisms Available to Mitigate Conservation and Environmental Issues
Solutions for some of the most pressing issues involving farmed and wild shrimp production are available. Lighter trawl fishing nets and doors coupled with improved bycatch reduction devices can not only improve vessel performance and lower fuel costs but also result in decreased habitat conflicts. In shrimp farming greater attention to regional impacts from farming practices, better understanding of feed inputs and greater monitoring of farm outputs are potential solutions.
Major shrimp importers have the opportunity to encourage change and improvement in shrimp fishery production through messaging back down the supply chain. One potential key element in this messaging process is the introduction of “control documents” that spell out in the purchase agreement what is required to verify the legality and sustainability of the shrimp being purchased. If buyers introduce these purchase requirements and at the same time encourage their suppliers to engage in fishery and aquaculture improvement projects, then more sustainable farmed and wild shrimp will be available in the market.
The Role of the Global Sustainable Shrimp Roundtable
Founded by the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP), the Global Sustainable Shrimp Roundtable (GSSR) is a forum where like-minded shrimp importers and wholesalers can convene to discuss key issues relating to farmed and wild shrimp sustainability and learn more about how they can be part of improvement solutions.
Participation in the Roundtable is voluntary and without cost (unless at some point the participants determine that they want to raise funds for specific projects). It is anticipated that the Roundtable will convene at least once a year during a major trade event such as the International Boston Seafood Show, the Global Aquaculture Alliance annual meeting (GOAL) or a similar event.
The primary goal of the GSSR is to leverage the purchasing power of major world shrimp buyers to support fishery and aquaculture improvement that results in more environmentally friendly production that meets international standards for sustainability.
Potential Roundtable activities and functions may include:
- Learning about current and future shrimp fishery and aquaculture improvement projects launched by industry or conservation organizations.
- Convening and/or support for specific issue-related shrimp conferences and workshops.
- Supporting the harmonization of shrimp ecolabels.
- Better understanding of the role of water quality in farmed shrimp practices.
- Facilitating the transfer of technology relating to shrimp fishing gear and practices or farmed shrimp practices.
- Better understanding of the role of forage fish in shrimp feed.
- Mechanisms for attracting grants to develop or support research programs.
The Role of SFP
SFP is currently working on shrimp fishery improvement in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the Mexican Gulf of California and is beginning work in Indonesia. Farmed shrimp projects include Indonesia, a major study of the sustainability of forage fish inputs to shrimp feed and the benchmarking of shrimp aquaculture standards developed by the Global Aquaculture Alliance, GlobalGap and the World Wildlife Fund. SFP will leverage experience in these fishery and aquaculture initiatives to assist in identifying needed improvements elsewhere and potential solutions. SFP convened the first Global Sustainable Shrimp Roundtable in 2010 during the International Boston Seafood Show and held a second informal Roundtable during the Global Aquaculture Alliance GOAL meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia that same year. Further Roundtables will be announced.