At least one industry is cheering the efforts behind the Trump administration's reciprocal tariffs — warm water shrimpers.
Shrimpers in the U.S. have been fighting a losing battle with imported shrimp for years, but now they see a step in the right direction to balance the industry.
The "reciprocal tariffs", albeit lower than anticipated, hit India, Indonesia, Ecuador and Vietnam — the biggest exporters of shrimp to the U.S.
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Sal Versaggi runs Versaggi Seafood in Tampa with his three brothers. It's a business their grandfather started more than a hundred years ago.
Considering trade policy implications isn't new to him.
"We've got to get some kind of a handle on the amount of shrimp that's coming into this country because we've had a tsunami of shrimp that is just killing the market," he said.
Versaggi has worked in states along the Gulf of Mexico and in the waters north of South America. Today his fleet is five boats — down from 55 in the 1990s.
Versaggi is one of the founding members of the Southern Shrimp Alliance, an organization that advocates for warm water shrimpers in eight states from North Carolina to Texas. The organization wrote in support of the reciprocal tariffs and on President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day," calling the policy a "crucial lifeline."
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More than 90% of shrimp consumed in the U.S. is imported according to USDA data, and at much lower prices than the domestic catch. Low catch prices and high costs for fuel and operations at home has made a bad situation worse for those in the industry.
Versaggi said with prices for shrimp this low, it's impossible to compete. But maybe tariffs on exported shrimp will level the playing field.
"I hope that bottoms out the prices here, where we don't go any lower. We can't go lower. This is worst it's ever been," he said.
Versaggi said he can't "paint every import with the same brush." While he admits good products exist, he points to farmed shrimp as problematic.
Shrimp farming has increased significantly in the past decade to meet demand, and with advances in the industry they're more efficient and more productive. Global production is expected to reach 6 million metric tons this year.
It's something top of mind for Justin Versaggi, the fourth generation in his family to go into the business.
"If there was ever one singular thing to talk about and to try to hope changes, it's the imports. We have a global oversupply, which suppresses the domestic market," Justin Versaggi said.
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Prices of most commodities are more expensive today than they were five years ago, but not shrimp. A federal analysis showed between 2022 and 2023 the price of shrimp dropped 38%.
"We're importing more shrimp here than we consume. It's the basic law of supply and demand. There's too much supply and not enough demand, prices are gonna fall. And that's where we are," he said.
It's caused the price of some shrimp to drop as low as $1.50 a pound — cheaper than most canned tuna. It's been great for consumers and Sal Versaggi recognizes that, but he says the imbalance is too extreme and putting Americans out of work.
He also pointed to issues that have plagued the overseas shrimp farming industry: the overuse of chemicals and antibiotics as well as labor abuses. Some shrimp farms are transparent in their production, but the issues are well documented — something the Southern Shrimp Alliance has been vocal about.
The tariffs aren't the whole solution for Sal Versaggi. He said the industry could see short term gains, but more permanent solutions are needed like legislation or product indexing.
For now, it's wait and see.
"At least it's a step in the right direction, of doing something. And that's what we need," said Sal Versaggi.
