ST. BERNARD PARISH, La. - In an attempt to save the struggling local shrimp industry, the St. Bernard Parish council will consider a new ordinance at its meeting Sept. 5 that would ban the selling of imported seafood in the parish.
It comes as shrimpers s0ay financial times are the worst they've seen in recent years, with most not able to make $1 a pound for their catch.
"It's an economic issue because we're now losing everything we have," said Councilman Fred Everhardt, who authored the ordinance. "The price of 16 to 20 shrimp is 75 cents when it used to be two years ago $3-$4 a pound, and we just can't afford to go out and pay our bills."
Leaders blame international vendors for the downturn, saying they are flooding the market and driving down local prices.
However, Everhardt said this particular measure is about safety over economics. He is concerned about contaminated seafood coming in from overseas. He expects big retailers in St. Bernard will likely challenge the ordinance. The council meets tonight at 7 p.m. (WDSU 09/045/23)
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