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Shrimp/Prawns

Recommendations
Eco-Best Spot prawns from Canada Pink shrimp from Oregon Farmed shrimp from U.S.	Eco-OK White shrimp Northern shrimp from U.S. and Canada Wild shrimp from U.S. Brown shrimp Spot prawns from U.S.	Eco-Worst Imported shrimp and prawns Blue shrimp Giant tiger trawn Chinese white shrimp

Recommendations

Eco-Best

Eco-OK

Eco-Worst

Details About Shrimp/Prawns

Health Details

These fish have low levels of contaminants

More about seafood and health »

Eco Details

Although Best Choices, U.S. farmed shrimp, spot prawns from Canada and Oregon pink shrimp (bite-size "cocktail" shrimp) are a small fraction of the shrimp sold in the U.S. market.
Why? Most shrimp (90 percent) eaten in the US. is imported from Southeast Asia and Latin America, where environmental regulations are often lax or not enforced.
The rest on the market (10 percent) comes from the Southeast U.S. (Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean), where fisheries and farms are held to stricter environmental standards.
OK Choices are northern shrimp and U.S. wild shrimp.

Get 10 quick facts about shrimp

More About Shrimp/Prawns

U.S. shrimp farms have made notable environmental progress in recent years, thanks to responsible siting practices and measures to reduce water pollution.

Environmental Defense has partnered with Wegmans Food Stores to bring customers farmed shrimp that meets rigorous health and environmental standards. (More on Wegmans' eco-friendly farmed shrimp.)

Species Information

This guide is produced in collaboration with the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

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