Ostend (Brusselsa Morning Newspaper) – Shrimp prices in Ostend plunged from €60/kg in May to €25 for 2 kg as catches jumped from 30–40 kg to 300 kg nightly, easing strain for fishers like Jill Duck and Christel Dewaele.
As VRT News reported, shrimp prices in Ostend have fallen to their lowest in months because more shrimp are being caught again. There was a low shrimp supply in the spring, around 30 to 40 kilos per night. This lower supply immediately caused the price to rise.
“Catching 30 kilograms per night is simply not profitable,”
Says Christel Dewaele of 0.191 Romy.
Jill Duck said her crew brought in 300 kilograms of shrimp in just one night, which she called “acceptable” because it lets them pay their costs without raising prices again. Buyers now pay only €25 for 2 kilograms at the fish ladder.
She mentioned that these shrimp are as fresh as possible because they were caught the same night they are sold. The larger supply has taken the pressure off everyone, giving fishermen a break.
Why did Ostend shrimp prices fall as catches jumped to 300 kg?
According to Christel, who sells shrimp at the fish ladder, for months, shrimp were very expensive, but people in Ostend still kept buying them. But in much smaller quantities, like half a kilo. Now they’re taking 2, 3, or even 5 kilos at a time.
According to FishCommunity, the new wave of shrimp is a big relief for Ostend’s fishing community because the earlier shortage caused real trouble.
“We were fortunate enough to be able to fish for sole,”
Christel said.
“If there hadn’t been any sole, we would have been stranded. Colleagues who weren’t equipped for sole couldn’t sail out. That was a disaster for them.”
She says fishers have to stay flexible because no one can control the sea, and even scientists do not know why shrimp are plentiful one season and gone the next. Christel mentioned that if there’s sole, they’ll fish for sole. If there’s squid, they’ll fish for squid. People are used to eating shrimp all year, but that’s no longer a sure thing.
In May 2025, gray North Sea shrimp were selling for €60 a kilo at the fish ladder, which was hard for fishermen, restaurants, and buyers. There were very few shrimp at that time, and only one boat, the 0.2 Michel Junior, kept fishing. Jill Duck mentioned that they didn’t like asking that much for shrimp, but they had no choice. There was simply less catch at that time.
