Boats fishing for Oregon pink shrimp, the first shrimp to be certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council in 2007, left the harbor for the first time in 2010 this week.
The season officially started on April 1 but bad weather delayed actual shrimping.
While the contentious chinook salmon season — the commercial season will open in May for the first time in two years — receives much of the attention in Oregon, shrimp has floated along largely under the radar.
Last year’s shrimp season was above average, with just over 22 million pounds coming ashore, but was below 2008 results. The issue wasn’t a lack of shrimp in the ocean, but a lack of enthusiasm in the marketplace.
To read the rest of this story, please go to: Sustainable Business Oregon.