When you buy grouper fillets at your grocery store, are you really getting what you're paying for? A new study by Oceana confirms that you may not be, and that the cost of seafood fraud is mounting. On average, consumers are being cheated out of hundreds of dollars a year because cheaper fish species are being exchanged for more expensive types. For instance, if you want to buy grouper but the fish you are buying is actually tilapia, you are spending more than $4.00 more a pound. In a restaurant, that cost difference jumps to $12.00. You think you are eating a high quality fish, but you're getting a cheaper species worth half the price you're paying. Oceana senior scientist Margot Stiles said in a statement, "swapping a lower cost fish for a higher value one is like ordering a filet … [Read more...]
Senator Boxer Asks FDA to Address Seafood Fraud
Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) wrote a letter to FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, urging the agency to increase enforcement efforts to address seafood fraud. In many cases, fish and other seafood is deliberately mislabeled and sold two consumers. The Senator said, "it is unacceptable that proven fraud is occurring on such a widespread basis. Seafood fraud is not only deceptive marketing, but it can pose serious health concerns, particularly for pregnant women seeking to limit exposure to heavy metals or individuals with serious allergies to certain types of fish." Since 2011, the group Oceana collected samples of fish from grocery stores, restaurants, and sushi facilities and genetically tested them. In Miami and Fort Lauderdale, 31% of the seafood tested by the group was mislabeled. In … [Read more...]
B. Roberts Foods Recalling Meatloaf
B. Roberts Foods of Charlotte, N.C., is recalling about 130 pounds of single serving meatloaf entrees because of an undeclared allergen and misbranding. The meatloaf contains anchovies, which is seafood, one of the eight most common allergens. The meatloaf was distributed to grocery stores in Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Washington D.C. The recalled meatloaf products are 17-ounce refrigerated packages of “Harris Teeter, Fresh Foods Market, American Cuisine, Meatloaf with Red Skin Mashed Potatoes.” The bottom label of each package is incorrect, reading “Homestyle Meatloaf with Tomato Sauce”. The bottom label has the establishment number “EST. 19198” in the USDA inspection mark. The “use by” date is 12/20/11. The product … [Read more...]
