The Trump Administration’s executive order to realign U.S. foreign aid is consistent with a top priority for the Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA)—urging the government to oppose further International Financial Institution (IFI)-backed farmed shrimp production that drives excess supply of global shrimp production. Last week, SSA sent a letter to the Senate Chairmen of the Committees on Finance and Foreign Relations that oversee U.S. funding and governance of IFIs and the role of the Department of Treasury in that process.
According to NOAA Fisheries, the total value of shrimp fishermen’s catch fell from $522 million in 2021 to $268 million in 2023 and remained close to this level in 2024. With nearly half of the value of the fishery wiped out in a short timeframe, many multi-generational, family-owned small fishing businesses are failing.
But it is not the product of free market forces. Ecuadorian shrimp companies alone have raked in $195 million in IFI funding for shrimp aquaculture since 2000, fueling a 150% surge of shrimp exports (264 million lbs) to the U.S. in four years. And that’s just Ecuador. India, Indonesia, Vietnam and other foreign shrimp industries are benefiting, too.
The U.S. Executive Directors from the Department of the Treasury at IFIs have a voice and vote on development project funding. Despite Congress directing the U.S. representatives to oppose projects that create additional surpluses in the global market, substantially injuring U.S. producers, new aquaculture projects have been supported as recently as June 2024.
“The Treasury’s greenlighting of shrimp aquaculture development projects—using U.S. taxpayer dollars—defies Congress and sinks American shrimpers. This ‘America Last’ agenda must stop,” said John Williams, executive director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance.
SSA believes that the additional scrutiny now seemingly being applied by the Treasury Department to IFI projects is consistent with the goals and objectives of the Trump Administration. SSA seeks consultations with the Departments of Treasury and State before the U.S. Executive Directors take a position on additional projects that further promote shrimp aquaculture.

Check out SSA’s previous work addressing this issue:
- “A Crisis of Our Own Making,” an August 2023 report, documents the history of IFI support for shrimp aquaculture projects
- SSA built, and made available to the public, a database cataloging the votes of U.S. Executive Directors on all projects proposed for funding by IFIs
- The database demonstrates that the U.S. Executive Directors have never opposed any proposed project that increases shrimp aquaculture production.
- In stark contrast, the database shows U.S. Executive Directors have actively opposed projects supporting further development of steel capacity and biofuel production overseas.
- Through formal correspondence, SSA explained the impact of these IFI projects on the U.S. shrimp industry to the Department of the Treasury, repeatedly requesting meetings to present the shrimp industry’s concerns.
- Although no meeting has taken place, following our inquiries, the U.S. Executive Directors did abstain in December of 2023 from voting on a project expressly supporting additional farmed shrimp exports for the first time.
- Also in June 2024, the U.S. Treasury invoked the “Surplus Commodities Rule” for the first time since its inception in 1986 with regard to a steel development project, signaling recognition of the statutory requirement imposed by 22 U.S.C. § 262h.
- SSA worked with Representative Troy Nehls (R-TX) and 13 bipartisan co-sponsors on the Save Our Shrimpers Act to prohibit U.S. taxpayer funds from being used by international financial institutions to finance any activity relating to shrimp farming, the processing of shrimp, or shrimp exports in a foreign country.
- In November 2024, Representative James Comer (R-KY), Chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Representative Clay Higgins (R-LA), and Representative Troy Nehls (R-TX) sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office(GAO) formally requesting that the GAO investigate Treasury’s efforts to adhere to the requirements of 22 U.S.C. § 262h.