Louisiana’s seafood producers have long braved harsh conditions to bring their catches to our plates. Aside from the hazards of the job, they have also had to navigate increasingly challenging market conditions over the past two decades as cheap imports have flooded the U.S., pushing down prices. Since 2021, the U.S. shrimp industry has lost almost half of its market value, according to the Southern Shrimp Alliance.

A closely watched study of how many redfish and other species the industrial menhaden industry nets and ultimately kills off of Louisiana’s coast shows the numbers are not as bad as some had feared, but recreational anglers called the results concerning nonetheless.

Industry officials pointed to the study as evidence that they did not deserve to be vilified, particularly given their economic contributions to the state. Conservationists highlighted the effects on redfish in particular while calling for further precautions.

Not all jewels shine deep-green like emeralds or have the sparkle of diamonds. Some tumble from algae-coated cages in a rush of rock and shell, briny water splashing alongside them onto the boat deck.

These fine commodities are oysters, grown and harvested just off Louisiana’s coastline. Traditionally, they’ve been farmed on seafloor beds, but some producers are now cultivating oysters in a string of floating cages.

Elizabeth Robinson enters a cool, damp room with fluorescent lights and dozens of large plastic bags holding liquid ranging from pastel yellow to dark rust.

It's not the typical image associated with Louisiana's oyster industry. But the lab and its process of growing algae play a key role in the nascent off-bottom oyster farming industry that's been expanding on and around Grand Isle over the past few years.