Buyers: Gulf shrimp to benefit from Thailand downgrade

The total effect won't really be known for weeks, probably months, but the recent downgrade of Thailand's Trafficking In Persons (TIP) Report status from the US State Department has Gulf seafood experts hopeful of increasing profits.

With potential trade sanctions looming, buyers told IntraFish, the time is now for shrimp caught in the Gulf of Mexico to emerge as a superior product.

"The longer there are import issues tied to the downgrade of Thailand or disease, the more it provides time for the domestic industry to separate itself from imported shrimp," Chris Nelson, vice president of Bon Secour Fisheries, told IntraFish.