PORTLAND, Maine — April 19, 2015 — Canadian imports of the sweet, quarter-sized crustaceans are turning up more in American restaurants and seafood markets since a ban on fishing for Maine shrimp dried up local sources.
Maine fishmonger Glen Libby made a disheartening discovery on Easter Sunday brunch — the cold water shrimp on the menu at a restaurant up the street from his fish market were from Canada, not New England.
Canadian imports of the sweet, quarter-sized crustaceans are turning up more in American restaurants and seafood markets since a ban on fishing for Maine shrimp dried up local sources. The value of Canada's shrimp imports to the U.S. grew nearly 20 percent, to more than $30.5 million, from 2013 to 2014, federal statistics say. Canadian imports of cold water shrimp to Maine alone more than doubled, to nearly 100 metric tons, in that time, Canadian authorities said.
The price to American consumers has also risen since the December 2013 shutdown. Libby said the inability to sell the popular shrimp is a deep pain in the winter and spring, when customers typically come looking for them. But he said he'd rather wait for the American fishery to reopen than sell the Canadian alternative.
"We're trying to be about local food, so that doesn't really fit the model," Libby said. "We're selling what's available and what's in season."
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