LSU AgCenter and Louisiana Sea Grant fisheries agent Thu Bui, left, provides Vietnamese translation for members of a Coast Guard rescue team demonstrating rescue techniques at the Louisiana Fisheries Forward Seafood Summit on March 11 in Houma, Louisiana. (Photo by Bruce Schultz)

Shrimper Gus Marie, of Chauvin, Louisiana, left, talks with representatives of the Barataria Terrebonne National Estuary Program during the seafood summit on March 11 in Houma, Louisiana. (Photo by Bruce Schultz)

News Release Distributed 03/13/15

HOUMA, La. – The Louisiana Fisheries Forward seafood summit held Wednesday (March 11) provided the seafood industry with information and assistance that could help producers stay in business and even increase profits.

Held by the LSU AgCenter, Louisiana Sea Grant and Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the summit gathered experts from across the state to advise fishermen and seafood business owners on improving their operations, either on the water or at the dock.

Presentations included upcoming LDWF grant programs, gear and bycatch information, how violations are handled, oyster fishery weights and measures, insuring against disaster, the crab professionalism program and an update on black spot treatments for shrimp.

LSU AgCenter and Louisiana Sea Grant marine extension agent Alan Matherne said the summit’s goal was to help seafood business owners improve their livelihoods and make more money.

“The networking here is just as important as what they hear from the speakers,” Matherne said.

The summit series is a great get-together exclusively for various sectors of the commercial fishing and seafood industry, he said. This was its third year.

Shrimper Gus Marie, of Chauvin, said the gathering provided him with the chance to talk with other shrimpers to learn about new things in the industry, something that was done over a two-way radio years ago. “They’d pass it on down the line like a telegraph,” he said.

Marie said that at this year’s summit he learned about programs to assist with installing hydraulic winches on his boat.

LSU AgCenter and Louisiana Sea Grant fisheries specialist Julie Anderson Lively presented details on two products that could be used instead of sulfites to prevent black spot, a harmless discoloration in harvested shrimp. These initial color changes are not an indication of bacteria spoilage, and they result from oxidation of natural enzymes in shrimp, she said.

To prevent the discoloration, sulfites are used on the shrimp, but some stores now only buy sulfite-free shrimp, Lively said. Two new products, Everfresh and Prawn Fresh, are available, and they appear to be reasonable substitutes for sulfites.

Both products prevent black spot, but Prawn Fresh is more difficult to use because it must be kept cold to be effective. She said the products will be tested further when shrimping season starts in May.

Louisiana Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne presented the current advertising campaign by the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board. The campaign is funded with the last of BP money from the 2010 oil spill funds, he said.

“When people think about seafood, we want them thinking about Louisiana,” he said.

Jason Froeba and Ty Medlen of the LDWF gave details on the Louisiana Wild Seafood Certification Program. To be certified, a product has to be caught in Louisiana waters by a licensed fishing operation and processed in the state.

Seafood certified under the program can bear the logo designating it as “Certified Authentic Louisiana Wild Seafood,” and the product can be traced.

LSU AgCenter and Louisiana Sea Grant fisheries agent Thomas Hymel said quality is being emphasized in the seafood industry, and the Louisiana Wild program helps with the quality issue.

“A lot of what we’re talking about is quality management,” Hymel said. “From the time that product hits the deck of that boat to the time it comes to the dock, it is handled properly so that it can command top dollar.”

Value-added processing, such as vacuum-packaging and branding can boost seafood income, he said. Alaskan salmon bought for canning once brought fishing boats only 5 cents a pound, but that has increased to $2 a pound because they can now be sold as fillets.

Lisa Manda, of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, said Louisiana seafood offers an alternative to imported, farm-raised seafood.

“This is a safe product. It is inspected and traceable, and we are promoting sustainability,” she said. “All those factors go into making this a fine product.”

Kim Chauvin, of the Louisiana Shrimp Advisory Panel for the Gulf Council, said current permit holders must report their catches or face losing their permits. Currently, she said, only 70 percent of permit holders comply with the reporting requirement, but the remainder can still file their paperwork detailing their catches.

Safety presentations included one by U.S. Coast Guard personnel who talked about different rescue techniques and devices that would be used with a helicopter.

More Louisiana Fisheries Forward educational events are planned for the seafood industry this spring. On March 24, at the Port of Delcambre, a program will be held for shrimpers in the morning and crabbers in the afternoon. More information is available from Thu Bui by email or 337-251-6662.

Additional meetings will be held on April 7 in Dulac and April 22 in Larose. More information is available from Alan Matherne by email or 985-873-6495.

More details for these meetings can be found online at http://lafisheriesforward.org/