The US Suspends Exports of Mexican High Seas Shrimp
The US State Department claims that the Mexican sea turtle protection program no longer complies with the standards set between both nations. Therefore, it has suspended the certification that allows Mexican shrimp to enter the US. The suspension on the commercialization of shrimp to the US only applied to the high seas shrimp. The river shrimp and the aquaculture will be able to be exported without a problem. During the suspension, which coincides with the end of the fishing season of this species, it will not be possible to export trawl shrimp until the permit is recovered.
Mexico Failed the US Verification Process
The State Department said it suspended Mexico’s certification because its sea turtle protection program is no longer comparable to the United States program. After several verification visits to fishing ports in several Mexican states between 2019 and 2021, US authorities detected deficiencies in the use of Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) on 106 shrimp nets. Among the ports visited were Mazatlán, Puerto Peñasco, Tampico, Campeche, and Puerto Juárez. All of them are key ports for the high sea shrimp sector and have a high concentration of shrimps and sea turtles.
According to the National Aquaculture and Fisheries Commission (Conapesca), since the current government in Mexico took office (2018), officials that provided training to fishing crews on the correct use of TEDs have been dissolved for the most part, and practices previously established have been left out from the net fishing activity. For exports to continue, Mexican authorities must request a verification visit at the beginning of the season (August) so that this recertification can be carried out. If the suspension is prolonged for a year, Conapesca and other Mexican Chamber institutions are estimating substantial losses for the sector.
Substantial Damage Estimated for the Fishery Industry
Mexico´s high sea shrimp ban started on May 1st and will remain suspended until September of this year, when a new US verification occurs. Conapesca estimated that this would potentially cost the sector USD 180 million in export losses. High sea shrimp from the net fishing sector accounts for around 45% of total shrimp exports. According to the Ministry of Rural Development (SADER), Mexico is the seventh-largest producer worldwide, and Mexican shrimp consists of 3 out of every 100 tons consumed in the world.
The primary customer for Mexican shrimp is the US, which buys 78% of Mexico´s export shrimp with smaller quantities going to countries such as China (14%), Japan (5%), and Malaysia (2%). According to Conapesca figures, the US represents more than 40% of Mexican exports of all fishing and aquaculture products, shrimp being the main exporting product. The high sea shrimp industry generates around 400 thousand jobs in Mexico. Furthermore, it will severely affect the currency entry in Mexico and affect the offer for consumers in the US market, the biggest consumption and importing market for shrimp worldwide.
US Market Outlook
In 2020, the US imported US 4.8 billion worth of frozen shrimp, leading the global import share at 27% market share. Mexico is the fifth-largest supplier of shrimp to the US, with 6.3% of the US import market, behind leading suppliers; India (46%), Indonesia (17..8%), Ecuador (11.1%), and Vietnam (6.4%). As the biggest consumer of shrimps worldwide, the US has increased its imports by 32% from 2012-20. According to The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), over 90% of the seafood consumed in the United States of America is imported, with shrimp the main imported species above salmon.
In 2020, there was a decrease of 2% in global shrimp imports, mainly driven by China’s COVID-19 restrictions. However, the US had both volumes (2.5%), and value (1.24%) of shrimp imports increase in 2020, confirming that demand for seafood in the US is still rising. For Mexico to reinstate export certification as soon as possible, it will have to request a verification visit at the start of the new shrimping season in September. If the US does not lift the suspension on Mexican high sea shrimp by then, the export losses for the shrimp sector in Mexico could escalate to USD 300 million.
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