TYBEE ISLAND, Ga. (WSAV) -- Local shrimpers are saying to bring on the tariffs after they say cheap imported shrimp is killing the seafood market.
“You can't compete,” Lazaretto Packing owner, Patrick Matthews said. “You're not trying to compete with another company, you're trying to compe
te with another country.”
He has been in the shrimping business for decades and can speak firsthand on what tariffs may mean for the shrimping industry. So far, optimistic is just one word to describe how local shrimpers are feeling after President Donald Trump doubled down on tax on imported goods.
Many praising the president for his efforts to keep production on American soil. They hope it will induce people to buy local which is good news for the shrimpers bottom line.
“That is what we've been hoping for somebody to do something about the problem,” Matthews said. “And the imports are definitely our biggest problem.”
Matthew said this has been an ongoing battle for more than 10 years. Shrimpers said foreign imports have forced them to lower their price in order to stay competitive, which has led to many American shrimping companies to go out of business.
“You got to be able to fix everything on the boat that mechanic, welder, carpenter, net man, everything in between and still be a heck of a shrimper,” he said. “As long as you can catch shrimp without burning fuel, you can make money. It’s hard to do very much of that all the time.”
It is a tariff strategy that Matthews is hoping will bring relief to him and his fellow home-grown competitors.
“Hopefully with these tariffs, the value of our product will be worth it,” he said. “We'll be able to have a better chance of staying in business.” ...read more read less
