Imported Shrimp for catfish bait against the law???

OK I saw on TPWD and Lynns Catfish Calendar that its against the law to use imported shrimp in Texas. Does anyone know where the TV Bait Shrimp come from that you buy in the frozen section of the grocery store?

These? Before your post, I would've assumed they were from the Gulf of Mexico (Aransas Pass and all that), but now I honestly don't know.

Wild caught product of USA.

Photo says Dist. by Gulf King Seafood in Aransas Pass Texas. I assume these are legal to use in Texas? I am going to call and get more information. I will post what I find out.

Photo says product of USA. Seems pretty clear cut to me.

Here's the language from TPWD that makes me unsure:

"Only use shrimp native to the Gulf of Mexico

Shrimp is a popular choice to use for bait when fishing, but not all shrimp species can be used as bait. Never use imported frozen shrimp in Texas waters. Imported shrimp includes all shrimp species not native to the Gulf of Mexico, including shrimp from other countries like Venezuela, or Thailand or from other non-Gulf states like California. Shrimp from a non-Gulf state or different country is considered imported and can not be used as bait."

I would assume that since the distributor is in Aransas Pass that the shrimp are from the Gulf of Mexico, but it's not 100% sure from the label. "Product of USA" could be other US waters. This is my long-winded way of saying "I don't know the right answer here"

If they came from California they would cost $23 instead of $3. I’d bet the house they came from the Gulf. Anybody want to take the wager?

Kinda what I was thinking also Uncle Zeek. Not exactly "cut and dried" I been using this bait shrimp a long time so I hope it is not against the law now.

Frozen shrimp sold as bait and purchased locally are usually ok. The issue came up from people buying shrimp that are for human consumption, including fresh, and using them as bait. The shrimp can spread white spot syndrome virus. It was discovered that the virus can survive being frozen. The introduction could devastate the native shrimp population in the Gulf of Mexico and has wiped out entire stocks of shrimp growers.

Best way is probably write or contact via phone or internet or email the shrimp company to get specifics. Terminology can be twisted ever so easily. As one of the TP&W secretaries/office personnel once told me. They cannot legally explain the rules. Only a Game Warden can, as they interpret the law (or get told from upline when issued).

I just happen to spot a little block of this notice in the TP&W mag a few months back & have posted it for the last 3 months or so. I figure everybody hopefully by now will know of these new rules.

I miss my printed rulebook. Getting ready to go after "The Giant" again in June (fingers crossed), I went thru the TP&W rules online printing items in the past two weeks, of items that pertain to me, fishing, and boats & motors, as well. Boy do I have a lot of questions to get clarified by a Game Warden very soon. It seems now to catch turtles (such as softshells), you have to have a hunting license. OK, but does that allow you to still catch them on set lines. All of the past few years new rules on Gator Gars, are they now a game fish & does that mean you can no longer take them on a set line. That is just the tip of the iceberg.

So you can see, every time they come up with a new rule, it can open up a can of worms, so to speak, because of the ramnifications and all the angles.

Lynn you bring up a good point about the gator gar. If you do set lines let's use 20 set lines as an example and you catch 3 gator gar you are only allowed to harvest 1 a day. Sometimes when it's really hot the fish do not survive being on the line overnight. You couldn't legally harvest the other 2 and leaving them to float would be unethical not to mention in violation of the waste of game laws. This scenario happened to me years ago when i used to set lines but luckily there were no regulations back then. Another question for the game warden

Yes, sadly, sometimes gars die fast, for no reason. They are like sharks, if they stop moving too long, they croak. It seems now you have to have a hunting license for turtles. That's another one. Since that is the case, is it legal to catch a softshell turtle on a set line now on. Normally you either catch a frog by spear, gig, or hand, not on any kind of a line. So when thewy went to hunting license to get frogs, that was a no-brainer there. But turtles are a different game.

I have a whole page of questions. It is my cousin's MonArk 14 footer & motor I plan to use soon. I think I had to p/u 3 separate forms. One to get her to sign so I can renew the stickers & two, one each for change of her address on the boat & also the motor. But the office personnel was really nice. Since no Game Warden was in to get answers, she looked up the one who is assigned to Limestone county, as I should be fishing in that area of Lake Limestone. It actually is in 3 counties in all. So I have his phone number to buzz & ask my questions.

Did anybody ever look up TV brand shrimp to get a conmtact number or address for a definitive answer?

I tried calling their offices yesterday. No reply. May try sending a written inquiry, as I'm sincerely curious about the answer.

They are in every bait store on the Texas coast guys and have been my entire life. I prefer the fresh dead’s for catching my shark baits when I’m down there . Sometimes we’ve had to use TV brand when the storms were approaching and the bait shops were empty of fresh. TV Bait Shrimp are also in every freshwater bait store in Texas that has frozen bait as well and have been for at least 40 yrs. I’m betting the #1 bait shrimp in Texas is legal.

I agree..dont think they would be readily available and marked as bait if
you couldn't use them.

I agree..dont think they would be readily available and marked as bait if
you couldn't use them.

This makes me think that these don't come from Gulf of Mexico. I could be very wrong, but it sure looks like they come from Nicaragua, although they do not say that all of there fleet is there.

From the Gulf King Seafood web site they have the following.

"Gulf KIng was founded in 1936 by Sydney Herndon and his father in Corpus Christi Texas as a seafood retailer & distributor. Soon after Sydney Herndon bought his first shrimp boat and by 1987 had the largest fleet of Shrimp Boats in the US with over 50 trawling vessels. In the mid to late '90s the company began moving the fleet to Nicaragua seeking year-round fishing and to secure a more long term fishing ground. Currently Gulf King vessels are still in Nicaragua catching wild caught Pink and White Shrimp in the Caribbean Sea. 4th generation shrimper Mark Herndon's company Gulf King Shrimp Exchange Inc. imports and markets the shrimp produced by the Gulf King fleet in Nicaragua and from select fleets trawling the waters of Honduras."
Gulf King Products

How on earth can it say product of USA and be from Nicaragua? Claiming it’s a product of USA is regulated by the FTC. You can’t claim it’s a product of USA if it’s from Nicaragua. I don’t understand what the confusion is all about.

https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/complying-made-usa-standard

Hmm, this seems to be bigger than a can of worms. It could still be a product of USA if the company catching them were stationed in the USA but catching them in international waters. And Caribbean Sea or waters off of Nicaragua are not exactly the Gulf of Mexico. Of which TP&W rules say it must be shrimp from the Gulf.

There are ways to distort certain things, like some chicken producers claiming their chickens do not have hormones or such. That gives the implication that others might be. However, unless one is doing that illegally, none are supposed to putting that in any of their chickens here in the USA.

Just because the name of the company implies "Gulf" in it, or that it is distributed from Aransas Point, or that it is a product of the USA, does not positively identify it as being Gulf of Mexico shrimp.

I will see if I can research this some Wed/Thurs night some.

I have used those all my life and they are in every bait store. I always assumed they were legal. I always keep the receipt from any bait I buy even worms but have been ask by wardens for my license but never a question about bait.