Major Gulf of Mexico shrimp processor sticking with Covid-era e-commerce venture

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit in early 2020 and restaurants began to close, Biloxi Freezing and Processing, a Gulf of Mexico shrimp wholesaler and processor operating out of Biloxi, Mississippi, U.S.A., was suddenly stuck with a warehouse full of shrimp and no one to sell it to.

Prior to the pandemic, Biloxi Freezing and Processing ran one of the largest wholesaling operations of Gulf shrimp, supplying private-label and branded products to major national and regional retailers and restaurant chains.

But facing a crisis, the company’s president, Mark Mavar, and vice president, Jonathan McLendon, knew they needed to get creative if they were going to move their product. Adding to the pressure, the Gulf of Mexico shrimp season was set to start in May 2020, and they would need to make space for the upcoming harvest.

Their solution was to post on Facebook.

“Just bring a cooler and pull up to the Biloxi warehouse; we’ll fill it up and charge by the pound,” their post read.

Word of mouth spread quickly, and soon, cars loaded with ice chests formed lines that wrapped around nearby Biloxi streets.

“To say we were surprised is an understatement,” McLendon said in a press release. “One guy flew in on a private plane from Tennessee and filled five large ice chests. He flew back out with a plane full of shrimp.”

As word spread about the “restaurant-quality” shrimp with close to wholesale pricing, Mavar and McLendon recognized they could transform this part of their business …

Photo courtesy of Biloxi Freezing & Processing/M&M Shrimp