April 13, 2017 — SEAFOOD NEWS — While shrimp conditions are good this year, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Commission isn’t ready to open the spring season early.
Commission members said at their meeting today in Baton Rouge that they want more data before setting the dates for the season.
Nearly all of the shrimpers at the meeting said they would rather wait for the season to open at the normal time so the shrimp can grow to be larger. The spring shrimp season usually opens in mid to late May.
LDWF biologist Jeff Marx said data he’s collected show better conditions than in previous years. Shrimp size, growth and development generally depend on the amount of rainfall, the temperature and salinity level of the water.
But shrimpers spoke against an early season.
“We have a year where Jeff’s data, so far, stated we have optimum weather for growth,” said Houma shrimper Barry Rogers. “I’ve spoken to factories, spoken to fishermen (and) everyone would like to see us at least work on 60 to 70 count (per pound) shrimp. It would be great for the fishermen and great for the processors.”
Acy Cooper, a commercial shrimper and president of the Louisiana Shrimp Association, said two weeks can make a big difference in the size of the shrimp, especially with how high the temperatures are right now.
“I don’t think we need a meeting at the end of the month because of the fact that we can’t go opening the season with smaller shrimp,” Cooper said. “Giving them another week or two would make a big difference. Even if it takes a little longer for us to go to work, the shrimp (will be) bigger and it’s more profitable for us.”
Cooper said last year the shrimp were so small that it was hard for shrimpers to make any money.
John Brown, a 33-year shrimper, was the sole fishermen to express interest in opening the season early. Brown said because of the pump stations and freshwater diversions in the Barataria Basin area, shrimp haven’t been able to grow large anymore.
“If you wait, you’re gonna catch nothing. I can tell you what you’re going to catch,” Brown said. “One hundred percent of my income comes from fishing. When the season’s open, I trawl. I don’t make money on big shrimp because we don’t catch big shrimp anymore.”
This story originally appeared on Seafoodnews.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.