after headinc f^^^ paclcaged ready for the market, nearly all shrimp landed 

 ai'e shore-processed in some manner before entering market channels. 



Upon landing, the shrimp ordinarily are tal^en directly from the 

 boat to the shrimp plant vhere they are initially processed. The essen- 

 tial task of the plant is to wash and weigh the shrimp, head them if 

 necessary, and pack them in whatever form is required. 



Fresh Shrimp, l-Thole or Headless 



Fresh-shrimp plants, in general, are relatively simple estab- 

 lishments. Since the fixed investment required for operations is small, 

 some raw-shrimp dealers on the Atlantic coast are in a position to 

 operate at various locations up and down the coast in the course of a 

 year. They participate in the fall run in South Carolina or Georgia, 

 the winter run in Florida, and return to South Carolina or Georgia for 

 the spring season. Their plants apart from some office space may con- 

 sist of nothing more than unpartitioned buildings containing tables for 

 heading shrimp, washing vats, scales, ice crushers, and space for storing 

 boxes and fishing gear. Functionally, establishiaents of this sort con- 

 fine thejnselves to unloading, weighing, heading, washing, and packing in 

 ice. (see figure V - 5l) 



On the Gulf coast, fresh shrimp plants tend to be establishments 

 of more permanent character. The larger firms may have their ovm fuel tanks, 

 machine shops, boat ways, etc., as do many of the canneries. In addition, 

 establishments of this size may operate their own fishing fleets, or at 

 least take title to the catch, oim freezers and breading plants and main- 

 tain their own sales staff as part of integi'ated operations. From a 

 technological point of view, it is desirable to head the shrimp on the 

 boat as soon as they are caught. Decomposition starts in the head rather 

 than in the tail of the shrimp, and if the head is removed early, spoilage 

 is markedly retarded. 



The practice of Including a header among the crew of a fishing 

 vessel is of recent origin. Aside fran heading, this man may perform 

 incidental tasks aboard ship such as washing down the decks, etc. The 

 practice at present is making rapid headway in south Texas ports and may 

 spread to other Gulf coast ports in the futxxre. Some non-operating vessel 

 owners disapprove of the system. They feel that a header taltes the place 

 of a skilled crew member on board vessel. Since the header is not capable 

 of performing all of the duties performed by a fisherman, they fear that 

 boat operations and maintenance suffer when a header is taken along. 



Packing methods vary primarily according to the distance over 

 which the shrimp are moved. By far the most common method is to pack 

 the shrimp imbedded in chipped ice in 100- pound wooden crates or boxes. 



2U5 



