Crawfish scarcity drove up prices in Louisiana
1/13/2024 12:00:00 AM
CATEGORIES:
Agriculture
Business & Industry
Plants & Wildlife
Society & Public Health
AFFECTED AREAS:
Louisiana
Acadia Parish, LA
Crowley, LA
East Baton Rouge Parish, LA
Baton Rouge, LA
Jefferson Parish, LA
Marrero, LA
Start Date: 7/15/2023
- End Date: 1/12/2024
Average prices in Louisiana for boiled crawfish are $12.99 per pound, nearly double what it was this week last year, according to the co-founder of The Crawfish App.
BRProud (Baton Rouge, La.), Jan 12, 2024
The Crawfish App indicates that markets in New Orleans were not selling live crawfish. Boiled crawfish were selling for $9 to $10. A crawfish business in Marrero was delaying opening seven days a week, due to the shortage. Ninety percent of their revenue comes from crawfish and carries them through the rest of the year. So the shortage worries the business owner.
WDSU (New Orleans, La.), Jan 11, 2024
A crawfish farmer and his son reported that the drought and meager crawfish catch this season were almost not worth the trouble, given the expense of bait and labor. They were bringing $8 per pound on Jan. 9.
In 2023, they could collect 20 to 30 sacks of crawfish from 300 to 400 acres. In January 2024, they were able to harvest about half of a sack, or about 15 pounds, daily from 80 acres, which is less than 5% of last year's catch. One year ago in 2023, crawfish sold for $4.50 per pound, but this year, the mudbugs average $8.50 per pound.
KATC (Lafayette, La.), Jan 11, 2024
Sources
