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Shrimp, Pink

(Oregon, Wild-caught)

Rating:
When buying small shrimp for salad or shrimp cocktail, pink shrimp from Oregon is considered a best choice and is certified as sustainable to the standard of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).

Market Names:
Bay Shrimp, Cocktail Shrimp, Ocean Shrimp, Salad Shrimp, Ebi

Consumer Notes:
Pink shrimp is typically sold as salad, cocktail or sandwich shrimp. Shrimp is known as ebi when prepared for sushi.

Summary:
Shrimp may be divided into three categories based upon their habitat: coldwater or northern; warmwater, tropical or southern; and freshwater. Pink and northern shrimp are small coldwater shrimp species.

All shrimp are short lived, fast growers that produce many young, and so are resistant to being overfished . Smaller species of coldwater shrimp, in particular pink and northern shrimp, are typically caught by trawl .

Bycatch reduction devices have brought trawl bycatch down to very low levels in coldwater shrimp fisheries, and catch of endangered species, such as sea turtles, is rare.

Pink shrimp is also caught off Washington, where little assessment of population size or management is carried out, instead reliance is made on the larger Oregon fishery for that information. We recommend choosing Oregon pink shrimp over Washington pink shrimp when possible.

Bottom trawls may cause damage to the seafloor. However, the trawl configuration used in the Oregon pink shrimp fishery is deemed less damaging than other bottom trawl gears used in coldwater shrimp fisheries, including the northern shrimp fishery off Atlantic Canada. Pink shrimp from Oregon is therefore a "Best Choice."

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