Cajun Shrimp Boil

History, tradition and origin

Shrimp are eaten on every inhabited coast, from grilled prawns in the Mediterranean to dried shrimp in Asian stocks and the spiced boils of the American South. The shrimp cocktail, cold shrimp with a sharp tomato sauce, became a fixture of twentieth-century restaurant menus. Whole shrimp are also a common dish at new year and festival tables in East Asia.

Food economy and industry

Shrimp is one of the most traded seafoods in the world. More than half now comes from pond farms, mainly in Asia and Latin America, and the rest from trawlers. Farming has raised concerns about mangrove loss and trawling about bycatch, so certification schemes and turtle-excluder devices have become part of the trade.