The Demo Site

ORIENTAL, North Carolina: A rash of safety scares that caused some Chinese imports, including poisoned toothpaste, lead-tainted toys, and contaminated pet food, to be pulled off store shelves in the United States and elsewhere has spiked demand for products made in the United States. But in the case of shrimp, American's favorite seafood, there is not enough to go around.

A staggering 92 percent of shrimp eaten in the United States is imported. Last year, 8 percent of it, about 151 million pounds, or about 70 million kilograms, came from China.

Last month, U.S. food safety officials included shrimp from China on a short list of seafood they are banning until the shrimp no longer tests positive for unapproved chemicals and cancer-causing agents. That should be good news for the U.S. shrimp fisheries, pushed to the brink of extinction by low-priced imports.

But even if import restrictions result in higher prices for domestic shrimp, success remains a long shot for the remaining American shrimp fishermen. And for some, any price increases will arrive too late.

In this small town at the southern edge of Pamlico Sound, a second-generation fisherman, Sherrill Styron is reluctantly planning to retire and convert the two-acre, or 0.8-hectare, hub for his business, Garland F. Fulcher Seafood, into condominiums.

It is a dramatic shift for Styron, who just turned 65 and is the mayor of Oriental. Fifteen years ago, he said, it would have been "crazy" to think the waterfront property where he rose from crew member to business owner would become condos. "But there's not any money to be made here anymore," Styron said.

The trickle of imports from China exploded after Beijing joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, a move that lifted many barriers to the U.S. market. China has become the world's leading seafood supplier, and last year was the third-largest seafood exporter to the United States, supplying $1.9 billion in fish and shellfish. Since cheaper imports began flooding the U.S. market, many North Carolina fishermen have abandoned shrimp, a trend being replicated elsewhere across the United States.
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By: Diedtra Henderson The Boston Globe - International Herald Tribune