Crawfish processors are still having trouble hiring people to peel tails, and that is threatening two different but intertwined Louisiana industries.
About 30 to 50 percent of Louisiana's crawfish harvest is bought by processors that peel and package crawfish tail meat.
But with no one to peel them, processors aren't buying.
Louisiana Commissioner of Agriculture Dr. Mike Strain says that drop in demand means a drop in price.
"It's resulted in a precipitous drop in the value that the crawfish are at the farm level," he said.
And since many crawfish farmers are also rice growers, income from one crop can help make up shortfalls in another.
"Normally what happens in years like now, when rice is not profitable, it's crawfish that adds to the bottom line," said Strain. "Now in addition to the rice not being profitable, many of these farmers will not see a profit from the crawfish industry."
The commissioner says that income is needed for rice farmers to pay their bills, and that's being threatened.
The shortage in package Louisiana crawfish also threatens to drive consumers to imported crawfish.
"Without the availability of certified Louisiana crawfish tails, then it opens up the market to further imports," he explained.
The labor problem stems from the H-2B visa program, which allows for foreign migrant workers to come to the U.S. and take jobs in the crawfish processing industry -- immigration crackdowns and the government shutdown have led to gaps in the H-2B program.