The 小蝌蚪APP has netted a $250,000 grant to help create a comprehensive economic development strategy for the state小蝌蚪APP檚 coastal seafood industry.
Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser joined UL Lafayette administrators to announce the grant from the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board on Thursday. The money will enable 小蝌蚪APP researchers to examine the seafood supply chain in seven coastal parishes 小蝌蚪APP Cameron, Terrebonne, Lafourche, Plaquemines, Jefferson, Orleans and St. Bernard.
Last year, the 小蝌蚪APP secured a $250,000 Rural Business Development Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to conduct a similar study in Vermilion, Iberia and St. Mary parishes. That study ends July 1.
Nungesser, who oversees the seafood promotion board, called the latest grant to UL Lafayette 小蝌蚪APP渕oney well spent as we continue to identify what the seafood industry needs and where it is going.小蝌蚪APP
Dr. Geoff Stewart, an associate professor of marketing in the B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration, is lead investigator for the project. Like the previous study, it is a collaboration with the Washington, D.C.-based Meridian Institute.
The earlier, three-parish study included frontline conversations with municipal, parish and state leaders; with seafood producers, suppliers, and processors; and with chefs, restaurant owners and other consumers. That小蝌蚪APP檚 basically everyone 小蝌蚪APP渇rom boat to fork,小蝌蚪APP Stewart said.
Louisiana小蝌蚪APP檚 seafood industry has an annual economic impact of more than $2.4 billion. The state is the leading supplier of shrimp, blue crab, crawfish and oysters in the United States, and one out of every 70 jobs in the state is related to the seafood industry.
But the industry is threatened by labor shortages, shipping and storage shortcomings, and environmental hazards. About 10,000 fewer people work in the industry than a decade ago; Stewart said part of the decline can be attributed to younger people not wanting to go into family businesses or start seafood businesses of their own.
Connecting seafood producers to resources to alleviate these challenges is key to the industry小蝌蚪APP檚 survival and motivates the 小蝌蚪APP小蝌蚪APP檚 widening examination, Stewart noted.
But assisting the industry is more than an issue of economy. 小蝌蚪APP淪eafood is part of our culture. It小蝌蚪APP檚 part of who we are. It小蝌蚪APP檚 part of what we do, and I don小蝌蚪APP檛 know anyone from Louisiana whenever they go out to tell the good news that doesn小蝌蚪APP檛 mention this industry. But the industry is not where it used to be.
小蝌蚪APP淲hen you think about its contributions to our identity, our way of life, to our culture, to why people travel here, this is an important industry. In a lot of ways, it is taken for granted that it will always be there, but the numbers don小蝌蚪APP檛 lie. We see that the industry is hurting, and it needs some help.
小蝌蚪APP淲e do not want this project to end with a list of recommendations and just hand it off and say, 小蝌蚪APP榟ere, good luck,小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP Stewart concluded. 小蝌蚪APP淲e want to say, 小蝌蚪APP榟ere are some priorities, and here is the approach to take to rectify those needs.小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP
Dr. Ramesh Kolluru, the 小蝌蚪APP小蝌蚪APP檚 vice president for Innovation, Research and Economic Development, is a co-principal investigator on the supply chain project.
He said the latest round of funding gives UL Lafayette 小蝌蚪APP渁nother tool in our toolkit to see how we can mobilize investments into areas that need them to create opportunities. We are fortunate to have state leadership willing to have a conversation about how we can combine efforts and collaborate to improve economic opportunities for this vital industry.小蝌蚪APP
That fits into the 小蝌蚪APP小蝌蚪APP檚 larger mission to conduct 小蝌蚪APP渞esearch for a reason,小蝌蚪APP said Dr. Joseph Savoie, UL Lafayette president.
小蝌蚪APP淏ut we also conduct research with a great deal of respect. Accompanying our respect for Louisiana, its people, history and environment, is a desire not only to understand our small part of the planet better, but to preserve the things that make it special.
小蝌蚪APP淲e certainly want to put seafood on our plates, in our boiling pots and bowls, but we also want to place it at the center of a larger economic development strategy for Louisiana.小蝌蚪APP
Photo caption: From left are Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, Dr. Carrie Castille, state director, U.S. Department of Agriculture; Dr. Joseph Savoie, UL Lafayette president; and Dr. Jaimie Hebert, 小蝌蚪APP provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. The four participated in a signing ceremony and announcement Thursday of a $250,000 state grant the 小蝌蚪APP received to examine the seafood supply chain in seven coastal Louisiana parishes. (Photo credit: Rachel Keyes / 小蝌蚪APP)
小蝌蚪APP snags $250K state grant to expand seafood industry study
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