A Synopsis of the Forum on
"Innovations in Wild Shrimp Fisheries"

A forum was held to introduce successful regulatory, conservation and seafood marketing strategies from Canada, the United States and Mexico to fishermen, regulators, researchers and others working to improve economic and ecological outcomes in the Gulf of Mexico's wild shrimp fisheries. The session was sponsored by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Property and Environment Research Center, and Environmental Defense. The agenda and a list of participants are attached.

Setting the stage
David Festa, oceans program director for Environmental Defense, opened the forum by urging participants to find practical ways to work together to conserve marine resources and build economically viable fishing businesses. David discussed Environmental Defense's interest in working with the business community, including current projects with FedEx to reduce delivery truck emissions and private landowners to conserve wildlife habitat.

Mike Voisin, owner of Motivatit Seafood, Inc. in Houma, Louisiana, drew upon his experience in oyster farming and seafood marketing to describe "change" as an inevitable and desirable factor creating new business opportunities. He used a quote from Charles Darwin to make a major point: "It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the most responsive to change." Mike also reminded the audience that quality is the key to success in seafood marketing and that it is important to find new markets, including China.

Gulf of Mexico shrimp fisheries
Bob Jones, who has led the Southeastern Fisheries Association in Jacksonville, Florida for four decades, reviewed the history of shrimping in the Gulf of Mexico. He recognized important concerns including falling shrimp prices resulting from growing imports and pressure from sport fishermen to reduce bycatch. Bob then made "crystal ball" predictions for 2015 and beyond. He is confident that the Gulfs shrimp resources will be robust for decades to come, and that regulatory and economic pressures will mean fewer offshore vessels. Bob predicts that vessels will be more efficient, extremely fuel conscious, have low bycatch, and take better care of shrimp to deliver a high quality product. He believes that logbooks, vessel monitoring systems, and on-board observers will be much more common. Bob is hopeful that niche markets and his proposal to target the U.S. military to use only domestic shrimp will benefit the industry, and is worried that continued loss of dockside infrastructure will harm commercial fishing.

Armando Wakida Kusunoki, a scientist with Mexico's National Fisheries Institute in Campeche, described the biology and management programs for Mexico's Gulf shrimp fishery. Armando outlined the management objectives to protect shrimp populations and sea turtles and achieve economic and social benefits. Limited access, closed seasons and areas, and TEDs are some of the key tools used. Armando expressed his interest in new ideas, particularly to improve the economic well-being of Mexico's Gulf shrimpers and their communities.

Successful models
A discussion of Canada's Gulf of St. Lawrence northern shrimp fishery was led by Louise Savard, senior biologist at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans in Mont-Joli, Quebec, and Georges Fraser, a shrimper, businessman and president of the Mantane Shrimpers Association. The Gulf of St. Lawrence fishery, which made the transition to individual fishing quotas starting in 1991, is today noted for its resource conservation and economic viability. Louise reported on the biology of northern shrimp, the design of the shrimp management program and trends in the fishery, including the near elimination of trawl bycatch. Georges described his family-owned shrimping business, which has prospered and is now being run by his two sons. He explained that IFQs have contributed to better planning and that Gulf of St. Lawrence shrimpers would not want to return to competitive, open-access fishing.

Mario Ramade Villanueva, a scientist at Mexico's Federation of Cooperatives of Baja California, discussed the use of exclusive territorial fishing rights in the spiny lobster fishery. Fishing rights granted by the Mexican government in 1992 have helped nine fishing cooperatives develop a high-value lobster fishery in a region where other economic opportunities are very limited. Marine Stewardship Council certification was achieved in 2004, the first in Mexico and Latin America, and the first community-based fishery in the developing world, to achieve such recognition. A science-based co-management system, effective enforcement and marine protected areas help the industry compete successfully in international markets.

The critical questions of "what do consumers want?" and "what does it mean for shrimp marketing strategies?" were discussed by Howard Johnson, president of an Oregon-based seafood planning and research company. Howard is optimistic about the future demand for seafood and the possibility of marketing high quality, sustainable Gulf shrimp. Key lessons from the Alaska Quality Seafood Program and Marine Stewardship Council include stringent quality standards, third-party verification, sustainable harvests, and the direct involvement of fishermen. Howard describes additional steps for positioning Gulf shrimp that include differentiating the product, targeting an appropriate segment of the market, and consumer education.

New Initiatives
Captain Phillip Lara, who owns fishing vessels and a seafood house in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Robin Riechers, with the Coastal Fisheries Division of Texas Parks and Wildlife, presented a proposal for a pilot individual fishing quota program for the Texas inshore shrimp fishery. Phillip discussed the need for better conservation and economic performance in the Coastal Bend shrimp fishery and Robin explained the process that Texas shrimpers and regulators are following to evaluate IFQs. Important details to work out include: deciding who is eligible to participate; setting a total catch that accounts for the shrimp's life cycle, annual swings in abundance and seasonality, choosing a method to fairly allocate quota shares to individuals, especially where catch records are not available; identifying regulations that can be safely relaxed; and creating an effective enforcement program. This new proposal builds on the inshore limited entry and license buyback program that Texas initiated in 1995.

Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, and Gene Talbott, founder of Research Strategies, Inc. in Pascagoula, Mississippi described market research and opportunities for Louisiana. Gene's research finds that improving and certifying the quality of wild shrimp is essential and that marketing should be linked to the state's tourism industry. Most consumers said they will pay more (about 75 cents per pound) for domestic shrimp. Ewell described a new "Wild American Shrimp" marketing strategy, patterned after certified Angus beef, which is being introduced. It will try to build demand for a high quality, differentiated product. Ewell and the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board would like to test a "turtle safe" logo as part of the campaign.

Sandra Diamond, a fisheries biologist at Texas Tech University, presented the initial results of her GIS research aimed at mapping biodiversity hotspots in the Gulf of Mexico. Sandra also described the Alaska crab industry's program to reduce its bycatch by tracking and avoiding high bycatch areas. Sandra believes there may be potential for a similar program in the Gulf of Mexico that will help the industry reduce bycatch and harvest a cleaner at no, or little, additional cost. Key questions for Sandra's research is whether high bycatch areas are persistent. She asked for additional industry help in determining if it is possible to use high-tech research to target shrimping where shrimp abundance is high and bycatch rates are low.

Next steps and strategies
Finally, the participants discussed next steps and strategies that would lead to better economic and ecological outcomes in Gulf of Mexico shrimp fisheries. One of the most important lessons from the Gulf of St. Lawrence shrimp fishery and the Baja California spiny lobster fishery is the favorable relationship between rights-based fishery management, better conservation, quality control and new market development. In each fishery, the likelihood of profitability for fishermen and processors has improved.

Several participants were hopeful that shrimp fishery leaders could "speak with one voice" to pursue new opportunities. It was suggested that site visits to the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Mexican fisheries would provide Gulf of Mexico fishermen and regulators with first-hand experience and new ideas. It was agreed that improving the quality of wild shrimp products, developing niche markets, branding and certification programs, and testing ideas like a turtle-safe logo were initiatives worth supporting. Several participants urged engaging Gulf state governors through the Governor's Consortium and Southern Governor's Conference, working with members of the U.S. Congress, and reaching out to state agencies and the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council.