3 replies to this topic

[IndyRob]

Glass Half Empty:

Giant Asian Tiger Prawns May Threaten Gulf Shrimp

Glass Half Full:

Recipe

[heidih]

Here is a link to a story posted today. Sounds like the numbers are truly up. Non natives seem to always have no predators and crowd out the locals. Frightening for the industry. They sound really large- should the worst occur and they take over will there be a market that is viable?

[IndyRob]

That article contains a sentence I've seen in several others...

Though tiger shrimp are edible, Fuller said they are not currently farmed in the United States.

I don't understand what that means. What does one have to do with the other?

I must be missing something here...

“I’ve had fishermen tell me they have quit bringing them in. They are seeing large numbers in their catch — multiples per night,”

Why would you not bring 12" edible shrimp in?

[ChrisZ]

They sound really large- should the worst occur and they take over will there be a market that is viable?

Tiger prawns are readily available in Australia, they are possibly the most common variety sold here. They are usually available in a range of different sizes, priced accordingly. The super large ones can be roughly the same price as lobster/crayfish, while the smaller ones can be found for less than the price of good chicken breast fillets.

The sad thing is that a lot of premium Australian seafood is exported and the stuff that is available to the local public is actually imported from Asia. I think that tiger prawns are the most commonly farmed type of prawn in Asia. (Not being pedantic, but a prawn and a shrimp are different species, so calling it a 'tiger shrimp' is not quite right). It is common to see local fishmongers selling 'King Prawns' which are not actually genuine 'King Prawns' (a local Australian species) but are just really bloody big Tiger Prawns. Not that I think anyone would really care, but I have a general distrust of Australian fishmongers when it comes to labelling their produce.

Farmed, frozen and imported prawns of any species can lack flavour compared to locally caught fresh options, but Australians buy and eat them by the bucketload so I don't see why there wouldn't be a viable market in the USA.