Even seafood can be locally sourced in a post-virus world

As we all work together to combat the spread of COVID-19 and return to some sort of normalcy, this pandemic has shed a new light on the importance of our country’s food distribution system and the heroic employees working to sustain it. From farmers and packagers to truck drivers, grocery clerks and restaurant workers, we owe them all a tremendous debt of gratitude. As President & CEO of The trū Shrimp Company, I have never appreciated our dedicated employees more than I do now.

One silver lining to this crisis is the renewed vigor for locally grown, sustainably raised food. Consumer behavior is being reshaped and Americans will be ever more conscious of the origin and safety of their food. Safe, sustainable, and domestically produced products will have a clear competitive advantage in the new, post-virus world.
Thankfully, the past decade has seen tremendous growth for local producers. From farmers markets and local breweries to regional farms providing grocery stores and restaurants with local meat, produce and dairy, the suppliers are there to meet the increased demand. At trū Shrimp, we too are poised to answer this consumer need of safe, sustainable, and traceable food grown and processed in the United States of America.
Yes, even shrimp can be locally sourced in the very near future. The trū Shrimp Company is revolutionizing the way shrimp are raised over a thousand miles from the nearest ocean. We are the first company to test and validate a true commercial-scale, shallow-water indoor shrimp farming technology in the United States. Our patented aquaculture technology produces superior-quality shrimp that are traceable, sustainable and antibiotic-free.
Did you know shrimp is America’s most popular seafood? It is a $39 billion market. However, 94% of the shrimp consumed in the U.S. is imported. In fact, shrimp is America’s second largest import. Imported shrimp is primarily from ocean-based pond farms overseas. It is largely untraceable and is often challenged with disease. Even worse, less than 1% of it is inspected by the FDA.
There is a real opportunity to seize this moment and make a change in how we both supply and consume shrimp in the U.S. The trū Shrimp Company is on the verge of building a first-of-its-kind aquaculture facility in Madison, SD. It will employ hundreds while doubling U.S. shrimp production for distribution to American restaurants, grocery stores and directly to consumers.
And that’s just one facility. In the years and decades to come, more facilities will further reduce our dependence on shrimp imported from Southeast Asia and other untraceable overseas producers. And, thanks to our years of intensive research and guided planning, our facilities will grow shrimp safely and sustainably using less land, less water and less energy while creating less waste and needing less transportation to distribute it to American consumers.
Like so many innovations, the story of trū Shrimp is the very definition of American ingenuity. Faith in a pioneering idea, collaboration to improve it, and the dedication to see it through. I believe these are the types of success stories that will not only sustain us through this difficult time but will also lead to new and better solutions to supply the safe, sustainable, domestically raised food Americans are clearly hungry for.
We all need to do our part. Not only to maintain but improve the quality and safety of our food supply. The trū Shrimp Company is proud to be part of the solution by growing the safest, most sustainable and best tasting shrimp in the world right here in the United States.
We truly believe our new facility, and the shrimp we produce, will have a substantial economic impact on the entire Midwest, as well as a positive influence on the sustainability of our country’s vital food industry well into the future.
If you would like to learn more about trū Shrimp’s product, sustainability efforts and mission, please visit trushrimpcompany.com. We are also seeking accredited investors who share our vision for providing consumers safe, sustainable, truly superior shrimp.