In a recent released seafood economic damage assessment by the Louisiana Sea Grant at LSU and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), the state has suffered more than $580-million dollars to infrastructure, revenue and resources. One resource suffering more than others, shrimp. Photo: Ed Lallo/Lallo Photography
by Ed Lallo/Gulf Seafood News
Halfway between Lafayette and Abbeville on Highway U.S. 167 is the little town of Maurice. A short hop-skip and a jump off the highway lays a backyard seafood store known for some of the freshest, highest quality shrimp and seafood in the state. Instead of a garage you find a homemade freezer housing Granger’s Seafood’s own brand of shrimp, crab, alligator, and other Louisiana products. Problem; like a lot of the rest of Louisiana seafood industry theirs is in jeopardy of disappearing.
Al and Cheryl Granger business was not physically damaged by any of the six major storms hitting the state during the past two-years. But like those to the east and west of them that were, they are struggling to survive. Photo: Ed Lallo/Lallo Photography
Al and Cheryl Granger business was not physically damaged by any of the six major storms hitting the state during the past two-years. But like those to the east and west of them that were, they are struggling to survive.
“That Hurricane Ida in the east makes me cry for those people, we were blessed over here,” said Cheryl Granger who operates the store while her husband shrimps.
As the last remnants of Ida were leaving, Al, who hunkered down on his boat during the storm, called his wife and told her to get clothes and groceries ready. He was going shrimping.
“He went out immediately after the storm,” she said. “He went to the west and for three solid weeks and never came home. He caught some of the most beautiful shrimp. Then bam, it played out just like it started.”
Due to heavy rains and flooding, the 2021 shrimp season was one of the worse on records. In a recent released seafood economic damage assessment by the Louisiana Sea Grant at LSU and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), the state has suffered more than $580-million dollars to infrastructure, revenue and resources.
“The fuel, the food, the deckhands; it added up. It was just a huge loss this year,” she Cheryl Granger who has to steady herself on a walker while working in her processing plant. Photo: Granger Seafood
The state’s economic infrastructure impact assessment does not include loss of revenue by businesses. That assessment has not been released.
One resource suffering more than others, shrimp.
With field surveys of LDWF biologists and restitution values obtained from Natural Resource Damage Assessments, the report found commodity resource losses estimated to be $118.5 million over the two-year period. Brown shrimp was close to exceeding, or right at 35% in project losses.
Sea Grant’s Dr. Rex Caffey says that he is not sure that figure will to hold up, and is more interested in watching the current white shrimp season.
Fresh shrimp losses exceeded more than $30,000 for the Granger’s last year. According to Cheryl, prior to Ida there was no shrimp to be found. Inflation is also taking its toll. Higher fuel prices, higher food price and the higher cost of labor, as well as Wildlife and Fisheries license fees that combined are driving the family deeper into debt.
“He traveled the most of coast this year, there was just nothing to be found. The fuel, the food, the deckhands; it added up. It was just a huge loss,” she said steading herself on a walker while suffering from a deteriorating back.
David Chauvin’s Seafood Company in Dulac had the roof blown off. “I went to look over the damage. It was worse than I expected,” said David Chauvin. I sat there not knowing what we were going to do” Photo: David Chauvin’s Seafood Company
David Chauvin, who with his wife Kim, operate docks in Dulac and Chauvin have also took a financial hit and are gambling with their financial future. David Chauvin’s Seafood Company, which was coming off one of the biggest seasons in a long time, were almost all completely destroyed by Hurricane Ida. The couple have sank more than a half million dollars of their life savings into rebuilding two of their three operations.
Chauvin told Gulf Seafood News that the family has a ritual for hurricanes; he stays with the boats while his wife takes the kids on vacation. This time was different. As the Cat Four hurricane came ashore, he and the children were at home taking care of his wife who was gravely ill with Covid.
David and Kim Chauvin. With Kim’s health getting better, the couple got into full gear to get back up and running. Photo: David Chauvin’s Seafood Company
“The day after the storm we took her to the hospital where she spent more than a week recovering,” he recalled the events. “I went to look over the damage. It was worse than I expected. I sat there not knowing what we were going to do. It was my wife who encouraged me to rebuild.”
“When I was in the hospital and my husband was assessing the damage he was truly overwhelmed,” she told Gulf Seafood News. “I want you to know the insurance situation as we sit here insurance poor. We had and have insurance. For some reason the insurance agent did not tell us t there was hurricane exclusion. When finding out our insurance would not be covering this, he was struck in deep despair. But our faith in God and in each other came to the forefront during these times.”
With his wife of 35-years’ health getting better, the couple got into full gear to get back up and running.
“We have been blessed with our work crews each day helping to put our businesses back together,” said Kim Chalin, who is president of the company. Photo: Facebook
“We have been blessed with our work crews each day helping to put our businesses back together,” said Kim, who is president of the company. “We have a long road to go, but for us everyday is a day of progress. My husband might have lost his way for a week or so, but through encouragement and prayer—he’s back up and running. Do we have it all rebuilt? No, but that will take some serious amount of time without insurance.”
The Chauvins faces similar problems as Grangers. With no insurance coverage and no help from the government they’ve had to sink the remains of their life savings into the business. “If we get struck by one more hurricane we are wiped out,” he said.
The Chauvin’s were lucky Ida left the Dulac fishing fleet afloat. He says the recent harvest has been good and he’s been shipping shrimp regularly to Mississippi for processing. “I don’t think I will rebuild in Chauvin, a lot of the fleet over there is sitting below the water line.”
Affordable Seafood Disaster Insurance
“The recently released Infrastructure, Revenue and Resource Losses to Louisiana Fisheries From the Hurricanes of 2020 and 2021 report is historic,” said Dr. David Veal, director of the American Shrimp Processors Association. “This gives us a golden opportunity to correct a problem that’s longstanding, how the marine industry, particularly the seafood industry is treated in disasters.”
According to Dr. David Veal the recently released seafood economic damage assessment has given the industry a golden opportunity to correct a problem that’s longstanding, how the marine industry, particularly the seafood industry is treated in disasters. Photo: American Shrimp Processors Assoc.
Dr. Veal, who is a member of the Louisiana Fishing Community Recovery Coalition, would like a program modeled after the United States Department of Homeland Security’s Flood Insurance program handled by FEMA, which enables homeowners, business owners and renters in participating communities to purchase federally backed flood insurance.
The American Shrimp Processors director envisions interagency cooperation between the Department of Commerce and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to handle disaster programs in coastal areas He says since USDA has a farm service administration in place that could collect damage assessments, while Commerce would fund the program and deposit funds directly into accounts.”
“The USDA has a representative in every county and parish in the country to handle claims for its Crop and Livestock Insurance Program. After a disaster they handle claims. Those in the program receive aid within a month. We have seafood folk in Mississippi that just received funds from 2011 disaster appropriations for flooding, that’s unacceptable,” he said.
“We are dealing with big money. I don’t think the solution is these one-time appropriations that have to continually go through with Congress. I think we need something similar to Homeland Security’s flood insurance and USDA crop insurance program,” Dr. Veal explained. “Processors and vessels could participate in a government subsidized disaster program for marine industries. This is bigger than one state. We have to think nationwide. It is time to stop thinking about ‘me’ and start thinking about ‘us’. That’s everybody involved with the water.”
Alaska, New England, the Southeast, West Coast, Hawaii and our territories, as well as the Gulf would be eligible to participate. He says the Gulf States need to partner with Alaska and New England to start the ball rolling. “We all have the same issues. We can’t do it if we just do it; we need everyone involved. This removes all individual state governments from the process. It would be the USDA doing the groundwork, and Commerce doing the funding.”
For Al and Cheryl Granger any kind of relief might come too late. She says the past year was the worse in 32-years in operation. She said the whole seafood business in the state is in trouble. “Us little people are getting pushed out of business. We need help,” she pleaded.
I have been involved with the shrimp industry for many years. I would like to help with these issues. Please contact me.