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The leader of the 'Seafood Capital of Alabama' says imported shrimp is destroying Bayou La Batre's economy. Mayor Henry Barnes says it's gotten to the point tha
The leader of the "Seafood Capital of Alabama" says imported shrimp is destroying Bayou La Batre's economy. Mayor Henry Barnes says it's gotten to the point that he questions how much longer the small fishing community can remain a city.
He says tax revenue is down 40%-50%. "I'm probably the last mayor because the way it looks, the city's dying. We'll probably wind up under the county if it keeps going like it's going," said Barnes. The flood of foreign seafood gained attention this week when a third-party commercial seafood consulting company, SeaD, said only one out of five vendors tested at the recent shrimp festival in Gulf Shores was selling Gulf wild-caught shrimp. "That's just very upsetting that they can get away with it," said Barnes. "They hang webbing up, American flags up, and pictures of shrimp boats in the Gulf, but they have no Gulf shrimp." Barnes and many others are trying to educate the public about the impacts of foreign seafood dumping and concerns about contaminants in farm-raised products from overseas. This month a new state law went into effect that forces seafood sellers to disclose if it's farm-raised or wild-caught and if it's foreign or domestic. "It helps arm consumers with the information they need to make an educated choice on which seafood industries they support, as well as protecting the health of their family at the dinner table, making sure that they're buying the high quality seafood also helps avoid the risks that are caused by some of the diseases and other issues found in imported seafood," said Luke Kiszla, Mobile Baykeeper Government Affairs Director. Mobile Baykeeper says it will take consumer pressure to change what's being sold and served in Alabama. "That's a critical part of the next step in protecting our seafood industry. And so I do hope that everybody pitches in and does their part," said Kiszla. The Alabama Department of Public Health enforces the new law and says it has not received any complaints or taken any enforcement action. To learn about the law and the complaint process:
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