Aquatic Animals

Commercial Shrimp Trawling and Bycatch Welfare

Shrimp trawling has among the highest bycatch ratios of any fishing method, killing enormous quantities of non-target fish turtles and invertebrates for every pound of shrimp landed.

Key Facts

Traditional shrimp trawling discards up to 10 pounds of bycatch for every pound of shrimp kept
Sea turtle excluder devices TED reduce turtle bycatch by over 97 percent but are not universally used
Juvenile fish caught as bycatch represent future breeding adults lost from already-stressed populations
Bottom-contact shrimp trawling destroys seabed habitat supporting the prey shrimp rely on

Welfare Considerations

Shrimp trawling creates cascading welfare harms. Non-target species including fish juvenile crustaceans and sea turtles are caught suffocated and discarded. The scale of this mortality vastly exceeds the shrimp catch itself. Certified sustainable shrimp from trap-caught or farmed sources with lower bycatch ratios represent better welfare choices. Consumer demand drives the scale of trawling activity.

What You Can Do

Choose shrimp certified by programs requiring turtle excluder devices and low bycatch rates
Prefer trap-caught or responsibly farmed shrimp over bottom-trawled wild shrimp
Ask retailers and restaurants about their shrimp sourcing and bycatch standards
Reduce shrimp consumption to decrease total demand for high-bycatch fishing methods