NOAA’s most recent catch figures for shrimp in the Gulf of Mexico show landings are much lower than monthly and annual averages.
An estimated 9.1 million pounds of shrimp were caught in November 2016, roughly 26.7 percent below the prior 14-year historical average for the month. From January through November, the overall shrimp catch was down 24.1 percent, with 88 million pounds of shrimp landed. Texas and Louisiana both experienced unusually low totals, with the amount of shrimp landed in 2016 the second-lowest amount recorded for a year since 2002.
However, prices for Gulf shrimp have been near historical highs, with U15-count shrimp priced at USD 9.77 (EUR 9.33) per pound in November in the Northern Gulf and USD 10.30 (EUR 9.84) per pound in the Western Gulf. Ex-vessel prices for 26-30 count shrimp were also higher than those reported in the previous, reportedly reaching 4.42 (EUR 4.22) per pound, compared to USD 2.84 (EUR 2.71) per pound last November.
According to NOAA, the most significant price increases were for 41-50 count shrimp, with ex-vessel prices in November hitting USD 2.84 (EUR 2.71) per pound compared to USD 1.13 (EUR 1.08) per pound in November 2015.
In addition, U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently totals for its annual distribution of funds collected through the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act (CDSOA) for fiscal year 2016. The act, which applied tariffs on goods (including seafood) that were deemed to violate U.S. anti-dumping regulations, was repealed in 2007, but funds collected through the act are still being distributed to domestic producers. A total of USD 853,257 (EUR 815,447) collected through CDSOA was made available for distribution in 2016.
