SEAFOODNEWS.COM by Michael Ramsingh — July 25, 2014 — Fishermen brought in just over 16 million pounds of shrimp in June, an increase of just over 10 million pounds from the May haul.
Catches out of Louisiana helped push Gulf of Mexico shrimp landings up sharply in June; enough to put the haul on par with the five year average for the month.
Fishermen brought in just over 16 million pounds of shrimp in June, an increase of just over 10 million pounds from the May haul. The catch out of Louisiana drove the improvement as fishermen brought in 11.1 million pounds of shrimp for the month compared to just 3.8 million pounds the month prior.
Fishermen and other industry participants had expected the Gulf catch to improve after a very slow start to the season. Colder water temperatures had delayed fishing in many regions. Catches across the Gulf states were all up in June.
However, June 2014 totals were still 5 percent shy from the same time last year and are about on par compared to the five-year-average.
Moreover, the YTD catch is still significantly short from last year by about to the tune of 23.3 percent. The Gulf catch through June stands at 31 million pounds, about 11 million pounds short of last year's harvest during this time.
As for the markets, Urner Barry's Jim Kenny reported that Gulf prices appear to be taking a more steady tone as the industry transitions from PUB production to headless shell-on.
There were no changes in the HLSO market in Thursday trading with just one change noted in PUD prices.
This story originally appeared on Seafood.com, a subscription site. It is reprinted with permission.