Shrimpers say President Trump’s 25% tariff on Indian imports is the most important win for them but.

India is the biggest exporter of shrimp to america, supplying greater than 37% of all imported shrimp since 2017 — roughly $2.3 billion price final 12 months alone. The Alliance says the flood of low-cost, farm-raised Indian shrimp has undercut costs on the dock, forcing a whole bunch of family-run shrimp boats throughout the Gulf Coast and South Atlantic to remain idle.

“This can be a turning level,” mentioned John Williams, government director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance. “President Trump’s announcement provides a path ahead for our business. It permits shrimpers to get again to work harvesting a healthful, nutritious product for American households.”

The brand new 25% obligation enhances tariffs already in place on shrimp from Indonesia (19%) and Vietnam (20%). Collectively, the three nations accounted for practically 65% of U.S. shrimp imports in 2024, with India answerable for 38.4%, Indonesia 17.4%, and Vietnam 8.9%. All three are additionally topic to present antidumping and countervailing duties.

The home shrimp business has lengthy complained that international rivals take pleasure in unfair benefits — pointing to alleged labor abuses, widespread antibiotic use and lax environmental requirements. Williams mentioned the brand new tariffs start to appropriate these imbalances whereas growing meals safety and increasing client entry to U.S.-caught wild shrimp.

“For many years, we’ve made it tough for our fishermen to function whereas international suppliers, who aren’t held to the identical excessive requirements, loved unfettered entry to American shoppers,” Williams mentioned. “Most seafood importers, retailers, and eating places went after the most affordable potential provide they might discover, irrespective of how unethically it was produced.”

In September 2024, a report from the Sustainability Incubator discovered that whereas wholesale shrimp costs had plunged to document lows, retail costs remained traditionally excessive — suggesting earnings have been captured by intermediaries reasonably than handed on to shoppers.

The Trump administration‘s broader seafood technique features a commerce settlement with Indonesia committing to outlaw the import of products made with compelled labor, bolster labor legislation enforcement, and fight unlawful and unregulated fishing.

The tariff shift additionally marks a reversal of long-standing U.S. coverage that allowed duty-free shrimp imports until topic to commerce enforcement orders. That modified in April, when the administration started imposing reciprocal tariffs throughout seafood classes.

In Could alone, U.S. Customs information confirmed practically $24 million in duties collected on uncooked warmwater shrimp imports — categorized underneath HTSUS code 0306.17. General, the U.S. imported $2.4 billion in seafood that month, on which $150 million in duties had been levied, elevating the efficient obligation price from historic ranges of 1–2% to over 6%.

Williams believes these adjustments may not solely assist present shrimpers however spur new funding in home manufacturing.

“After years of watching mates and neighbors depart the business, we are going to begin to see new funding on this planet’s most sustainable wild-caught warmwater shrimp fishery,” he mentioned.