The FDA has issued a shocking warning about radioactive foreign shrimp being sold here in the U.S. in more than 20 states. It highlights the issue of potentially toxic imported food being sold on the cheap. Today, Mikenzie Frost heads to the Carolina coast with U.S. shrimpers to find out how President Trump’s tariffs may help.

The following is a transcript of a report from “Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson.”
Watch the video by clicking the link at the end of the page.

Craig Reaves: “I think I was born into the industry, you know? It chose me. I didn’t choose it.”

Craig Reaves is a second-generation shrimper in South Carolina. His life in the Lowcountry is filled with lessons he’s learned on the boat from his father.

We met Reaves at his dock, where the de-evolution of the shrimp industry is evident.

Mikenzie Frost: “What did this creek used to look like?”

Craig Reaves: “There was other docks. They were probably, in the glory days, sixties and seventies, there could have been a hundred boats in this creek. All that’s gone. I don’t think our industry will probably ever come back like it was.”

Part of the drop off, Reaves says, is due to competition from cheaper, less-regulated shrimp from foreign competitors flooding the market and undercutting local producers.

At Walmart, a two-pound bag of shrimp from India goes for $13.43. At a specialty online retailer, a similar-sized bag of shrimp caught off the coast of Mississippi goes for $36.

Mikenzie Frost: “With the imported shrimp, what are the standards like that you have to keep up with and maintain compared to the shrimp that we’re seeing come in from overseas?”

Craig Reaves: “In my opinion, there’s no, no comparison. And then it seems like the importers, you know, do everything from banned antibiotics in ponds — just a lot of stuff that would never be acceptable here.”

Imported shrimp make up 94% of what Americans eat every year, coming from places like India, Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia, and China. Food safety regulations are also weak. The FDA tests less than half a percent of imported shrimp that comes into the U.S. for pesticides and bacteria. Less than 1% is tested for antibiotics.

Most of the shrimp comes from India and Vietnam, and from January to April 2025, the FDA indicates that 77% of refused shipments for banned antibiotics or fungicides came from those two countries.

Members of Congress are now pushing a bill that would require the FDA to destroy imported seafood that is refused entry due to contamination.

Making more American products and food is a cornerstone in President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda.

President Trump: “We have to take care of the American people first.”

The President has slapped tariffs, or fees, on dozens of countries, including those exporting shrimp. The hope is that it will help level the playing field, making U.S. seafood more competitively priced and supporting local producers over cheaper, low-quality imports.

In Beaufort, the president’s commitment signals possible relief.

Mikenzie Frost: “When you first heard about the tariffs that President Trump was implementing on imported shrimp, did you believe that it was too good to be true?”

Craig Reaves: “It’s amazing, um, to see what somebody that puts America first can, can get done.”

Heading out onto the waters, the crew drops the nets and drags them behind the boat.

Mikenzie Frost: “How much longer do you think the industry can last like this?”

Craig Reaves: “There’s not many coming behind us. I’m gonna be an optimist and think we’re always gonna, you know, we’re always gonna be here, but it’s not gonna be what it was in the glory days. But I think there’s gonna be a niche market for the guys that can figure out a way to survive.”

For Full Measure, Mikenzie Frost, near Beaufort, South Carolina.

Watch video here.