New England shrimp catch shrinks with moratorium back on the menu

PORTLAND Maine There s an effort underway to bring New England shrimp back to seafood customers but fishermen have ascertained limited of the crustaceans and the fishing industry that harvests them may face an even longer shutdown Fishermen have been under a moratorium on catching shrimp for more than a decade because of low population levels that scientists have attributed to setting change and warming oceans The harvesters were allowed to catch a small number of shrimp this past winter as part of an industry-funded sampling and evidence collection operation The fishermen didn t catch much though and fresh changes allow regulators to extend the moratorium for five years at a time instead of just one Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission personnel noted Monday Regulators will meet in December to determine whether to extend the moratorium mentioned Chelsea Tuohy a fishery management plan coordinator with the commission Tuohy announced it s workable regulators will consider another winter sampling effort However the continued poor condition of the northern shrimp stock has resulted in uncertainties in the future status of the seafood the commission explained in documents earlier this year Environmental conditions continue to be unfavorable for northern shrimp in the Gulf of Maine the commission explained Prior to the fishing moratorium the New England shrimp fishing industry was based largely in Maine Fishermen from Massachusetts and New Hampshire caught them as well The delicate pink crustaceans were a winter delicacy in the Northeast and elsewhere and they were one of the region s iconic seafood along with lobsters cod and scallops Maine fishermen sometimes caught more than million pounds metric conversion of the shrimp per year as not long ago as the early s but the catch cratered in The regulatory commission approved new rules for the fishery this past spring that recognize the influence of environmental conditions on stock productivity the commission declared in a May announcement The commission revealed it made the changes in response to the continued poor condition of the northern shrimp stock