As President Donald Trump threatens to raise tariffs on more foreign goods, Rep. Clay Higgins (R-La.) has called on him to levy tariffs of up to 100% on seafood imports — particularly shrimp and crawfish — from China, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
In a letter to Trump, Higgins raised concerns about unfair trade practices and seafood dumping and their impact on producers in Louisiana and across the U.S.
“Domestic shrimpers, fishermen, and crawfish producers in Louisiana and across the country face significant challenges competing against foreign seafood industries that are heavily subsidized and engage in illegal dumping into the United States,” Higgins wrote, adding that unfair trade practices drive down prices, disrupt markets, and threaten American jobs.
“I respectfully urge your administration to use all available enforcement tools, such as imposing antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD), implementing stricter testing protocols, and taking decisive actions, including levying tariffs of up to 100% or destroying shipments that fail to meet U.S. health standards, to ensure a level playing field for American producers,” the letter continued.
Louisiana crawfish farmers and wild fishers are recovering from a severe drought that led to lower seafood crop yields and higher prices for consumers. With the lack of crawfish, and the price of labor and bait increasing, some have even quit the industry, Mike Strain, Louisiana Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner, told WWNO.
“Many of them cannot get another crop loan because they were not able to pay off last year's crop loan,” he said. “They desperately need those dollars.”
As the Illuminator reports, imported goods have flooded Louisiana’s seafood market. DNA testing of seafood at the recent Louisiana Shrimp and Petroleum Festival in Morgan City showed many vendors were selling foreign shrimp.
The Louisiana Shrimp Association says many restaurants in the state choose to serve imported seafood to customers who believe they’re eating local fare, which has devastated local industries and endangered the region’s culture.
On top of that, the USDA says imported seafood has had more pathogen and toxin violations than any other food source over the past two decades. The FDA inspects only about 2% of imported seafood compared to the European Union, which inspects about 50%, according to a 2017 Government Accountability Office report.
"We would like to thank Congressman Higgins for bringing this to the attention of the president. We ask that President Trump investigates the unfair trade actions in the American shrimp industry due to the dumping of imported shrimp. The economic impact this is having on our commercial fishermen and our communities is devastating. We urge the president to take action to save our industry,” the Louisiana Shrimp Association said in a statement provided to WWNO.
