State officials have released a preview of a program that could eventually lead to the identification, branding and marketing of Louisiana certified wild-caught shrimp. As proposed, it’s a four-phase, voluntary program that would essentially certify the authenticity of Louisiana shrimp through the efforts of harvesters and processors. Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, one of the groups overseeing the development of the program, says that major seafood buyers nationwide have become increasingly interested in certified quality-control products. In this case, quality control means that every stop a wild-caught shrimp makes from being pulled out the water to being placed on the consumer’s plate would be accounted for in great detail.
While several state agencies have been working on such a program for years, the recently-created Louisiana Shrimp Task Force has helped fast-track the effort and its members first saw the draft plan last week. Supporters hope the program will not only help broaden the discussion on Louisiana shrimp, but also create new marketing strategies for fishermen and processors. Alaska, among other states, has a similar seafood program on the books and it took nearly two decades to perfect and implement. Carrie Castille, deputy assistant commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture, says the draft plan is a work in progress, but it won’t be much longer until the program is ready to go live.
The proposed program would operate on two levels: one for fishermen and another for processors. On the harvester side, the program would certify that fishermen are implementing food-safety practices that will be developed by university and industry scientists. That might mean electronic monitoring systems, protocols for additives or preservatives and new traceability guidelines. For processors, the program might call for random inspections beginning on the docks, new sanitary regulations, stricter labeling rules and physical specifications for what the product can look like. To be certain, improving quality on boats, at the docks and inside plants won’t be cheap and members of the Louisiana Shrimp Task Force have already admitted that government assistance may be needed. Otherwise, it’ll be a heavy load for both fishermen and processors. “The carrot, we hope, will be the ability to market a premium, branded wild-caught shrimp,” Castille says. “Consumers will eventually see the logo or the brand or the trademark and they’ll know it’s a safe, quality product.” Restaurants would be allowed to use the proposed trademark on their menus as well, but they would have to allow onsite inspections to take part in the program.
