US and Mexican authorities will begin work to remove the embargo on Mexican shrimp that has been in place since June.
The government of Mexico reported that diplomatic and Agriculture and Fisheries authorities met with officials of the United States Department of State to request the lifting of the embargo on Mexican coastal shrimp fishing.
Since June 1, 2021, small riverine vessels cannot export Mexican shrimp to the United States.
In a statement, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Sader) indicated that after the meeting it was agreed by both parties to carry out an expedited process to remove the embargo.
“During the conversation, it was possible to trace the route to recertify all Mexican shrimp production,” said the note distributed by Sader.
As a first step, the parties indicated that “work will immediately begin to prepare the review, coordinate the visits of the United States authorities to Mexico and thus quickly review the situation of commercial vessels.”
In addition, they committed to maintaining fluid and permanent communication, as well as a coordinated dynamic to jointly define “a scheme in the medium and long term that addresses not only the conservation of the sea turtle but also national sustainable fishing.”
In the report, the Mexican delegation reiterated the Mexican government’s commitment to the protection of the sea turtle by presenting the “Emerging Action Plan implemented by the government for the conservation of sea turtles”.
While the United States recognized the efforts of the Mexican government and was convinced that, once the established standards are met, “the expected results will be obtained in the short term.”
A week ago, the Mexican government reported that it was looking for an alternative to once again allow the export of coastal shrimp to the United States and thus avoid economic and social effects on this sector.
In addition, it pointed out that the verification visits were only to larger trawling vessels, where 118 technical deficiencies were found in 130 Sea Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) and not to smaller riverine vessels.
According to estimates, the capture of riparian shrimp represents an economic and social impact for more than 63,000 Mexican fishermen and their families, as well as for more than 254,000 people who depend on this activity.
Source: efe.com
