With the current moratorium set to expire later this year, NOAA Fisheries has moved to extend a ban on new federal shrimp permits for the Gulf of Mexico by another 10 years.
While the Gulf of Mexico federal shrimp fishery supported more than 4,000 commercial shrimping vessels, rising fuel prices and competition from cheaper imported shrimp drove many of those vessel owners to call it quits. Still, regulators believed that there were too many shrimp vessels operating to be profitable, so in 2006, NOAA Fisheries issued a 10-year moratorium on new commercial shrimp vessel permits. In 2008, the government issued just 1,933 vessel permits.
In 2016, NOAA Fisheries extended that moratorium for another 10 years. That extension is set to expire 26 October.
The number of shrimping vessels has continued to shrink over the last two decades. In 2024, NOAA Fisheries issued just 1,287 vessel permits, 646 fewer than in 2008. Those 646 permits have been permanently removed from availability.
The Gulf Council has determined that the moratorium should continue and recommended extending another 10 years in November 2025.
“The 10-year extension is expected to maintain biological, social, and economic benefits currently achieved under the moratorium while also promoting stability and efficiency in the fishery,” the council stated.
NOAA Fisheries agreed that the moratorium is a net positive for the fishery, but it said it is also open to a five-year moratorium instead.
“A shorter time frame would encourage the council and [NOAA Fisheries] to reconsider the need for the moratorium at an earlier point in time once the council completes its reevaluation of the appropriateness of the current minimum shrimp permit threshold,” the agency stated. “However, it should be noted that the moratorium could be eliminated at any time through a new FMP amendment and rulemaking.”
NOAA Fisheries is accepting public comments through 24 September.
