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Who's Going to Save Us from Uninspected Imported Fish?

Posted by Ed Levine, July 16, 2007 at 10:30 AM

Just how porous is our imported-fish inspection process? Taras Grescoe says we should be very scared. Why? Because the FDA, which is responsible for fish inspections, physically inspects 1.34 percent of the imported fish containers that come into this country and tests just 0.59 percent. The European Union, on the other hand, inspects 20 percent of its imported fish containers.

How is our wonderfully protective federal government dealing with this problematic situation? By cutting the budget for FDA in-country foreign fish inspections to zero!

Grescoe's prescriptions:

Banning all fish from Asia is clearly not a solution. But American consumers need to insist on high standards from not only their fish suppliers, but also from the officials responsible for inspecting the seafood they eat. As as the thin red line between the public and the world's fish farmers, the F.D.A. simply needs more money to do its job—money it hasn't been getting from Congress.

In the meantime, rather than swearing off seafood altogether, remember that excellent seafood is being produced domestically, often in ecologically sound ways, often at only a slight premium over imported prices. American aquaculturists are farming organic shrimp in the desert, growing tilapia in indoor tanks and reseeding the Chesapeke Bay with oysters. Now is the perfect time to splurge on quality.

3 Comments | Tags: FDA, food safety, seafood