(COLORADO SPRINGS) — Every Saturday and Sunday at Momma Pearl’s Cajun Kitchen, local foodies enjoy a traditional regional treat: live-boiled crayfish. But recently a question was raised concerning the import of the aquatic species, which posed a risk to this family-owned establishment.

According to a public input document sent to Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) in August 2023, discussing the red swamp crayfish importation, it’s been illegal to import, transport, or possess live crawdads in Colorado for decades. Restauranteurs were unaware of these regulations, and CPW didn’t realize the imports were taking place.

It was argued that the red swamp crayfish is accustomed to much warmer climates and likely would not survive in Colorado waters. Also, since live crayfish come at a high cost, those for the import argued that it was unlikely the crayfish would be released or used as bait.

Chef Robert “BB” Brunet, Executive Chef at Momma Pearl’s, agrees.

“I don’t think any self-respecting Cajun is going to pay $8 a pound for crawfish and then go use it as bait or throw it out in the lake.”

These crawdads are for eating.

Restauranteurs and chefs protesting the ban said that they would happily submit to regulations concerning shipment and purchase of the live crawfish, to mitigate any damage to ecological systems.

The other side argued that despite the acknowledged good intentions of the food industry, imported live crayfish will inevitably wind up in the waterways at some point—and the benefits are not worth the risk. According to CPW data, 42% of federal threatened or endangered species are at risk as a direct result of invasive species.

According to the import regulations in question, any restaurant or individual found to be in possession of illegal aquatic species would be subject to fines and penalties under state law. But on Jan. 1, the regulations were changed and the red swamp crawdad was officially approved for import.

Chef BB was thankful for that.

“To be honest with you, the crawfish make up a huge portion of our business here at Momma Pearl’s Cajun kitchen. And it would have been a devastating loss had we not been able to reinstate that. The crawfish usually account for about 30-40% of our overall sales for the year,” said Chef BB.

“We boil them up every weekend. And this is a traditional thing that we do in Louisiana. It’s more of a social gathering event. Everybody comes around and we have crawfish with potatoes, corn, and sausage. Ice cold beer, good weather. Somebody’s back porch. It’s a great day.”

The first live boil of the season is happening at Momma Pearl’s on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024 at 11 a.m.

Momma Pearl’s is located at 162 Tracker Drive, #110.