In South Texas, shrimp are coming ashore. The $200 million Texas offshore shrimp fishing industry is beginning to see competition from farmers on the coast and further inland.
As fish consumption in the United States continues to grow, concerns are rising that wild populations have been overfished and other supplies are needed. Aquaculture, or fish farming, is bridging the gap to meet consumers’ demands as the fastest growing food industry globally.
In the last several years, shrimp has emerged as U.S. consumers’ favorite type of seafood, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reporting that the average American eats more than 5 pounds of shrimp annually. With that tempting demand, shrimp aquaculture is exploding, with several companies based in South Texas.
In the 1990s, shrimp farms using pond systems cropped up along the Texas Gulf Coast but struggled with a lack of quality larvae and staying profitable, so many shut down. Today, breeding facilities have advanced and the price of shrimp has increased, so these coastal facilities are reemerging with new aquaculture techniques.
In Rio Hondo, about 40 minutes north of Brownsville, Trans American Aquaculture last year announced plans to put its 1,880-acre shrimp farming facility, a defunct shrimp farm that has been used only as a research facility, into production.
While facilities like Trans American’s operate near the coast, others are moving further inland thanks to the emergence of new solutions to the biggest problems farmers face: keeping the water in which the shrimp live clean enough for a healthy growing environment.