Business executives of the trū Shrimp Co. recently signed a letter of intent to locate the company’s first $50 million shrimp production facility, Luverne Bay Harbor, in Luverne.

Trū Shrimp officials also issued a letter of intent to locate its first shrimp hatchery, Marshall Cove Hatchery, in Marshall.

The company also will renovate a vacant USDA-approved processing facility in Marshall to prepare more than 8 million pounds of shrimp estimated to be produced annually by a single harbor.

Finally, the company announced that construction of a training facility will begin this summer — Balaton Bay Reef in Balaton. This facility, adjacent to the trū Shrimp Innovation Center and Laboratory, will be used to train personnel to work in the shrimp production harbors.

Construction of the training facility and hatchery, and renovation of the processing facility, are scheduled to begin later this year. Groundbreaking for the harbor is scheduled for early 2018.

In a press release, Mike Ziebell, company president and CEO, explained that construction of the facilities in Marshall and Luverne is a major step toward developing a large-scale shrimp aquaculture industry in the state.

 

Mike Ziebell

A global first
“What is happening in Minnesota has not been done anywhere in the world,” he said. “We are creating an industry that will supply the world with safe, clean and abundant shrimp. There are 1.6 billion pounds of shrimp consumed annually in the U.S., and 80% of it is imported largely from Southeast Asia. The facilities in Marshall and Luverne will produce the most natural shrimp possible using a sustainable, antibiotic-free and environmentally responsible approach.”

Related:Wanted in Minnesota: Shrimp growers

According to a University of Minnesota economic impact study, construction of a single harbor would generate more than $48 million in economic contribution in the southwest Minnesota region. Construction of the biosecure facility would result in $14.5 million of labor income and support an estimated 330 jobs. Once the 9-acre structure is built, it will continue to generate an estimated $23 million annually in economic activity, and provide employment directly and indirectly for 124 people.

Ziebell said that raising shrimp in Minnesota makes sense since feed is available here.

“Economically and environmentally, it makes much more sense to raise shrimp near their food source than to ship feed to shrimp raised in coastal ponds thousands of miles from the U.S. market,” he said. “Until now, the technology to effectively raise shrimp in the Midwest on a large scale did not exist. Now it does, and we have proven it.”

Trū Shrimp Co. is an affiliate of Ralco, a third-generation, multinational company based in Balaton.

For more information about triShrump, visit trushrimpcompany.com.

Source: trūShrimp