The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has certified the Guyana seabob shrimp (Xiphopenaeus kroyeri) fishery in the Western Central Atlantic under its fisheries standard, the organization announced on 6 August.
The fishery has become the first in Guyana to be certified under the MSC program, and was requested by the Guyana Association of Trawler Owners and Seafood Processors in 2018 following the establishment of a fishery improvement project (FIP) back in 2012.
“The Guyana Seabob shrimp fishery has demonstrated the importance of sustainable fishing by making improvements and meeting the requirements of the MSC standard,” MSC Regional Director of the Americas Brian Perkins said. “Congratulations to the Guyana Association of Trawler Owners and Seafood Processors on this achievement – we’re proud to have another well-managed Latin American fishery in the MSC program.”
The seabob shrimp fishery was able to make impressive gains in recent years courtesy of a fishery improvement project, which resulted in a number of management improvements, MSC said. Those included the development of an inshore no-trawl zone in response to scientific advice; the implementation of bycatch reduction devices for all nets; the adoption of on-board closed circuit TV cameras on all vessels; and more.
Typically found on mud or sand substrates in both marine and brackish waters, Guyana seabob shrimp are decapod crustaceans with speedy growth rates – the shrimp have an average lifespan of 18 months. They’re often caught using bottom and shrimp trawls, MSC said.
The assessment was executed by independent conformity assessment body Vottunarstofan Tun EHF. The fishery will be certified until 2024, undergoing annual audits within that timeframe “to ensure the MSC standard continues to be met,” said MSC.
Many companies will stand to benefit from the certification, including Georgetown, Guyana-based Pritipaul Singh Investment. The USD 50 million (EUR 44.6 million) business – which exports 11 to 12 million pounds of shrimp annually, mostly to the United States – owns and operates 50 steel-hull seabob trawlers.
During Seafood Expo Global in May 2019 – where Pritipaul Singh Investment was exhibiting for the first time, looking to drum up more business in Europe – Blaine Bailey-Gregory, the vice president of Lakeland, Florida, U.S.A. Bailey’s Seafood Inc., which imports Pritipaul Singh Investment’s seabob into the U.S. and sells to retailers and foodservice outlets nationwide, told SeafoodSource U.S. buyers are also making a bigger push for MSC certification.
“The demand [for it] is getting louder and more urgent,” she said.
Seabob shrimp is best served boiled or breaded, as “they’re just the right size” for popcorn shrimp, according to Bailey-Gregory and Pritipaul Singh Jr., the managing director of Pritipaul Singh Investment.
The seabob fishery is the first in Guyana to be certified by MSC. The neighboring country of Suriname has a seabob fishery that was certified under the MSC program in 2011.
Image courtesy of the Marine Stewardship Council
