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NEW STUDY SHOWS CONSUMERS FACE SKYROCKETING SHRIMP PRICES IF
FOOD TAX
IMPOSED ON SHRIMP IMPORTS
Shrimp Menu Items Expanded by 47% at top 200 Chain Restaurants
Since 1999;
Consumer Retail Purchases of Shrimp Up Sharply in Recent Years
Washington, D.C. A new study by The Trade Partnership released
today by
the CITAC/ASDA Shrimp Task Force found that antidumping food taxes
imposed
on shrimp imports would cause prices for all shrimp sold in the
U.S. to soar
as high as 44%, and that such a price hike could be accompanied
by a
one-third fall in shrimp consumption.
The Shrimp Task Force also released two new analyses that underscore
the
benefits of shrimp imports to U.S. consumers. In a survey of the
country¹s
top 200 chain restaurants, Food Beat Inc. found that offerings of
shrimp
menu items increased 47% during the last five years. A third analysis,
also
conducted by The Trade Partnership, shows a sharp increase in grocery
store
and retail purchases of shrimp by American consumers of all income
levels
during the past several years.
Because of the availability of reasonably priced imports, which
account for
nearly 90% of all shrimp consumed in the U.S., shrimp has risen
to become
America¹s #1 seafood. The three studies released today, commissioned
by the
Shrimp Task Force, quantify the damaging impact that import duties
(taxes)
would have on the price and availability of shrimp in the U.S. Claiming
that imported shrimp is being illegally dumped on the market, domestic
shrimp producers have petitioned the U.S. International Trade Commission
(ITC) and the Department of Commerce to tax their competitors and
consumers
by placing duties on imported shrimp from six countries.
The 44% price hike in the cost of shrimp predicted by the Trade
Partnership¹s study represents an estimated increase of 28%
in the price of
U.S.-caught shrimp, an 84% increase in the price of shrimp from
the
countries targeted in the petition, and a 19% increase in the price
of
shrimp from other foreign countries. The study utilizes duty levels
proposed by the petitioners to calculate the impact that dumping
duties
would have on shrimp prices.
³There is no doubt that price hikes of this magnitude resulting
from the
domestic shrimpers¹ proposed food tax would do enormous damage
to the
industries that depend on affordable shrimp to meet consumer demand,
as well
as to consumers themselves, who will have to cut down on or forego
shrimp
altogether,² said Wally Stevens, Chairman of the Shrimp Task
Force. ³Make no
mistake about it: the petitioners¹ goal is to raise the price
of shrimp for
all Americans, never mind the cost to those on the consuming side
of the
industry, or to the families that have come to expect and enjoy
access to
high-quality, affordable shrimp.²
The potential damage caused by the proposed food tax on American
families
and consuming industries is further underscored by a study conducted
by Food
Beat Inc., which tracked trends in shrimp menu prices and offerings
at the
nation¹s top 200 restaurant chains over a five-year period.
The study found
that the availability of shrimp at the nation¹s most popular
restaurants has
skyrocketed, with the number of shrimp offerings on menus of the
nation¹s
largest restaurant chains increasing 47% from 1999 to 2003. Since
1999, the
number of appetizers with shrimp on chain menus has increased 39%,
the
number of entrees with shrimp is up 40%, and the number of salads
that
include shrimp jumped 90%.
The study also found that shrimp price fluctuations over the past
five years
generally favored consumers. A greater percentage of shrimp menu
items show
price decreases when compared with overall menu item price decreases.
For
menus that showed increases in prices, the percentage of shrimp
price
increases was generally lower.
³Without question, the restaurants we surveyed have been able
to greatly
expand their offerings of appetizers, entrees and salads with shrimp
while
holding the line on prices,² said Diane Fox, author of the
Food Beat study.
In addition to the rising availability of shrimp items at the nation¹s
largest restaurant chains, shrimp has become an increasingly important
product offered for sale to American families by grocery stores,
specialty
food stores, and even ³big box² retailers that sell food
products for home
consumption. As a second Trade Partnership report demonstrates,
purchases
of shrimp at grocery stores and other retail outlets doubled between
1995
and 2002, the last year for which data is available.
³Abundant supplies of imports are crucial to the ability of
stores,
processors and distributors across the country to supply their customers¹
increasing calls for shrimp,² said Laura Baughman, President
of the Trade
Partnership. ³The ability to obtain needed supplies of affordably-priced
shrimp has helped fuel growing demand from American families at
all income
levels. In fact, shrimp consumption as a share of total food consumption
has
increased 45 percent among low income families the highest
increase of any
income level.²
³We commissioned these studies to show the impact of the proposed
food tax
on American families, as well as restaurants, grocers and other
consuming
industries,² said Stevens. ³The studies starkly emphasize
the impact of the
shrimpers¹ protectionist petition: just as shrimp consumption
in American
homes is soaring and all kinds of restaurants are offering more
shrimp items
than ever, the entire industry is threatened by price hikes that
will stop
these positive trends in their tracks. If the domestic shrimp industry
wins, the rest of America loses.²
In its price study, the Trade Partnership used an economic model
nearly
identical to the model used by the ITC to measure the impact of
dumping
duties sought by the domestic shrimp industries on U.S. industries.
The
model takes into account the degree to which imported shrimp substitutes
for
U.S.-caught shrimp, and how consumers react to increases in prices.
The
study¹s author used inputs that most closely match the U.S.
producers¹ view
of the market, including the trade-weighted average duties proposed
by the
domestic shrimp industry from a low of 62.9% to a high of
117.4%.
The Food Beat study analyzed data from the top 200 restaurant chains
over
the past five years pertaining to shrimp menu items. The study also
revealed that shrimp menu items could now be found at a range of
price
points that fit the chains¹ typical customer. The sales study
by the Trade
Partnership utilized National Marine Fisheries Services data in
its
calculation of per capita shrimp consumption, and Bureau of Labor
Statistics
Consumer Expenditure data for its calculation of shrimp consumption
at home.
Due to the threat that antidumping taxes pose to both consumers
and to the
consuming industries that serve them, the Consuming Industries Trade
Action
Coalition (CITAC) has formed an alliance with the American Seafood
Distributors Associations (ASDA), bringing together concerned grocers,
restaurants, processors, distributors, business councils, and other
consuming groups to form the CITAC/ASDA Shrimp Task Force. The goal
of the
Shrimp Task Force is to assure that the U.S. government considers
all the
facts in the case fairly and objectively, with a full understanding
of the
ramifications to all American interests of any decision.
For more on this issue, visit www.citac.info/shrimp
or contact George Felcyn at
(202) 466-6210 or george.felcyn@pbnco.com.
To download the Adobe Acrobat version of this press release, click
here.
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