Louisiana shrimpers call for cap on foreign imports

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JEAN LAFITTE, La. — Louisiana shrimpers are demanding a cap be placed on shrimp imports. Shrimpers say foreign imports are killing business, with some saying they now can't afford to pay their bills.

Acy Cooper has been shrimping for 50 years, he told Eyewitness News, "This is the worst I have ever seen it."

According to shrimpers, the cost of shrimping now outweighs the profit. He says he just had to buy food for his employees because there's not enough work.

Cooper who is also the President of the Louisiana Shrimp Association, said, "There's no way we can make a living at one or two days a week, at record low prices."

He says foreign shrimp are flooding the market and that’s driving prices down for local fishermen. Shrimpers say at the start of last season the biggest shrimp were fetching $4 a pound. Now the local guys say for the same size shrimp they're only getting $.80 a pound.

Barry Rogers has been shrimping for 42 years, he and dozens of others are calling for state and federal leaders to place a cap on foreign imports.

Rogers said, "In a million years I would have never thought we would be where we at today."

Fishermen say it's costing all hard-working men and women shrimpers $400 to fuel up their boats, and to make a profit they have to catch more than 2000 pounds of shrimp.

Cooper said, "We want labeling laws, to make it clear, so when you grab a bag of shrimp, you know where it comes from."

Cooper said when buying shrimp, check the ingredients label to see where it's from, and that Louisiana shrimp are never pink.

According to the Louisiana Shrimp Association, last year 1.85 billion pounds of shrimp were imported into America.

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