U.S.-based shrimp processors are asking the government for countervailing duties against shrimp imports from seven foreign countries, alleging that each country is guilty of “dumping.”
The Coalition of Gulf Shrimp Industries, a Louisiana corporation, filed a petition on behalf of its 28 member companies, all shrimp processors based in Texas, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. The petition accuses China, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam of subsidizing their shrimp industries. The coalition alleges that this practice has made imported shrimp from those countries cheaper than domestic shrimp.
The petition made clear it did not represent shrimp fishermen, but indicated that the coalition handles about 94 percent of domestic shrimp, and the issue of dumping affects the entire U.S. shrimp industry.
Under World Trade Organization law, the United States, if it has enough evidence that the dumping practice is happening, has the right to impose duties, called countervailing duties, on shrimp coming from those counties, in order to balance prices.
