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Started By
Message
Shrimping Costs questions
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:28 pm
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:28 pm
Hey fellas, can anyone provide insight on the shrimping business?
My dad lives in the gulf coast of Mississippi. Shrimping is his livelihood— doing this for over 30 years. He’s been telling me he can’t profit off of shrimp because diesel fuel is $5 per gallon and he can only sell shrimp for $1 which obviously doesn’t net him any profit. Is someone screwing him over or is this how it is now? I always felt like someone was undercutting him but I don’t know the business like that.
Thanks I’m advance guys.
My dad lives in the gulf coast of Mississippi. Shrimping is his livelihood— doing this for over 30 years. He’s been telling me he can’t profit off of shrimp because diesel fuel is $5 per gallon and he can only sell shrimp for $1 which obviously doesn’t net him any profit. Is someone screwing him over or is this how it is now? I always felt like someone was undercutting him but I don’t know the business like that.
Thanks I’m advance guys.
32
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:29 pm to jtran1988
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:30 pm to jtran1988
quote:
diesel fuel is $5 per gallon and he can only sell shrimp for $1 which obviously doesn’t net him any profit.
Wut
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:30 pm to jtran1988
yes
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:31 pm to jtran1988
quote:
he can’t profit off of shrimp because diesel fuel is $5 per gallon and he can only sell shrimp for $1 which obviously doesn’t net him any profit.
Well, how many gallons of fuel are needed vs. how many pounds of shrimp he can sell?
The scenario you presented is not as simple as $5 COGS vs $1 revenue.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:32 pm to jtran1988
quote:
diesel fuel is $5 per gallon and he can only sell shrimp for $1
He’s not a very good shrimper if he uses a gallon of fuel to catch a pound of shrimp.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:32 pm to jtran1988
I'd ask your dad. He has 30 years of experience in the shrimping business.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:36 pm to jtran1988
Also...
You need to factor in his license, boat maintenance and marina costs, his salary, the salary of any help, equipment costs, etc.
We're dealing with a lot of shite here.
You need to factor in his license, boat maintenance and marina costs, his salary, the salary of any help, equipment costs, etc.
We're dealing with a lot of shite here.
This post was edited on 12/6/22 at 7:37 pm
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:39 pm to jtran1988
quote:
I always felt like someone was undercutting him
Yes, the Chinese, with the help of the U.S. government.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:40 pm to jtran1988
quote:
diesel fuel is $5 per gallon
not its not
quote:
he can only sell shrimp for $1
Wrong again
Off road diesel is around $4 a gallon and shrimp off the boat is $2.50/lb+ depending on the size
You can get more at the dock
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:41 pm to jtran1988
quote:
My dad lives in the gulf coast of Mississippi. Shrimping is his livelihood— doing this for over 30 years.
quote:
jtran1988
quote:checks out
tran
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:43 pm to jtran1988
quote:
He’s been telling me he can’t profit off of shrimp because diesel fuel is $5 per gallon and he can only sell shrimp for $1 which obviously doesn’t net him any profit.
quote:
net him any profit
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:46 pm to jtran1988
A couple of points -
Diesel is high right now but not $5/gallon for off road fuel purchased in bulk which is the only way a business like his should be buying it.
If he is trawling year round, he's in Fed waters and because his boat docks in MS doesn't mean he is shrimping there. How far out and where (east/west) is he going?
Every commercial fisherman I've ever met talks to other commercial fishermen. They don't always speak truthfully but considering that, what is he hearing from his peers - price, expenses, yields, etc?
Diesel is high right now but not $5/gallon for off road fuel purchased in bulk which is the only way a business like his should be buying it.
If he is trawling year round, he's in Fed waters and because his boat docks in MS doesn't mean he is shrimping there. How far out and where (east/west) is he going?
Every commercial fisherman I've ever met talks to other commercial fishermen. They don't always speak truthfully but considering that, what is he hearing from his peers - price, expenses, yields, etc?
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:47 pm to jtran1988
Does he ever sell right off the boat?
Posted on 12/6/22 at 7:58 pm to jtran1988
he can run red diesel in the shrimp boat which shouldn't be 5 dollars. Also, if he's getting only a dollar a pound it's because he's selling it mixed straight to some shrimp house, probably ran by Vietnamese. Needs to get his own marketing and sell it directly to consumers, which requires more personnel, or cull it out more to get higher margins on pre-sorted shrimp. That also requires more personnel. It's not an easy business anymore for an individual just wanting to run the boat. It would take some significant funding for an individual to start out in the business fresh and slightly less significant funding to improve the business from where it sounds like he is at. Also, does he have a federal waters license, or just state waters?
At this point, it is kind of like farming and fairly commercialized. I know someone who had some serious cash to throw around that did it for a while, talking 500k probably spent, no longer in that business, and certainly took a loss in the long run before calling it quits. Good luck to your pop.
At this point, it is kind of like farming and fairly commercialized. I know someone who had some serious cash to throw around that did it for a while, talking 500k probably spent, no longer in that business, and certainly took a loss in the long run before calling it quits. Good luck to your pop.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 8:00 pm to jtran1988
Posted on 12/6/22 at 8:19 pm to jtran1988
I think we need a tariff on imported seafood. It's a shame that shrimp that sells for $8 a pound nets the fisherman $1.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 8:23 pm to jtran1988
There's no money in it anymore. Used to actually be pretty lucrative. Foreign imports have decimated the industry. To head out for a week, up front you're buying hundreds of gallons of diesel, ice, groceries for the week, etc. The sheds are only giving $1 to $1.50 a pound. Selling to the public is more profitable but can also take more time that you could be out there catching more shrimp. Breakdowns and other unexpected expenses are inevitable. The only guys making any money are the ones that can stay out longer, or the small skiffs that go in and out.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 8:37 pm to jtran1988
Commercial fishing is the only industry that everyone complains that they do not make any money but no one ever gets out.
Posted on 12/6/22 at 8:38 pm to jtran1988
After the BP Oil Spill, all the white shrimpers took settlement money and "retired" until that money ran out.
The Vietnamese Shrimpers didn't retire, and pretty much took over the industry in the absence of the traditional shrimpers.
Your dad probably isn't "losing" money, but he is not making what he used to make.
The Vietnamese industry is one of the reasons. They don't care about undercutting the competition as long as they are still making any kind of profit.
And more power to them for that. I'm tired of being held hostage by the seafood industry in this state.
Guilt everybody into only buying "local", then taking the best catch and selling it to northern states for more profit and giving us the scraps.
My tip to everyone here: buy Spanish crawfish. It's the same breed as Louisiana, raised by a bunch of cajuns who went to Spain and realised that they could reproduce the industry over there, and they are $5-6 dollars cheaper a pound.
Start buying Spanish crawfish and watch the frozen local crawfish drop in price.
Supporting your local businesses goes both ways. Don't support them while they actively frick you.
The Vietnamese Shrimpers didn't retire, and pretty much took over the industry in the absence of the traditional shrimpers.
Your dad probably isn't "losing" money, but he is not making what he used to make.
The Vietnamese industry is one of the reasons. They don't care about undercutting the competition as long as they are still making any kind of profit.
And more power to them for that. I'm tired of being held hostage by the seafood industry in this state.
Guilt everybody into only buying "local", then taking the best catch and selling it to northern states for more profit and giving us the scraps.
My tip to everyone here: buy Spanish crawfish. It's the same breed as Louisiana, raised by a bunch of cajuns who went to Spain and realised that they could reproduce the industry over there, and they are $5-6 dollars cheaper a pound.
Start buying Spanish crawfish and watch the frozen local crawfish drop in price.
Supporting your local businesses goes both ways. Don't support them while they actively frick you.
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