Oceana has found widespread seafood mislabelling in the Los Angeles-area, according to a new report.
DNA testing confirms that 55% of the seafood sampled by Oceana was mislabelled based on federal law.
“It is disheartening to know that consumers are not getting wait they pay for,” said Beth Lowell, campaign director at Oceana. “Seafood fraud is not only ripping off consumers, but it is putting their health at risk and undermining their efforts to eat sustainably.”
In May and December of 2011, Oceana staff and supporters collected 119 seafood samples from grocery stores, restaurants and sushi venues in Los Angeles and Orange counties. The targeted species included those that were found to be mislabelled in previous studies as well as those with regional significance such as wild salmon, Dover or other regional soles, red snapper, yellowtail and white tuna.
Among the report’s other key findings include:
- Fraud was detected in 11 out of 18 different types of fish purchased
- Every single fish sold with the word ‘snapper’ in the label was mislabelled, according to federal guidelines
- Nearly nine out of every 10 sushi samples was mislabeled
- Eight out of nine sushi samples labelled as ‘white tuna’ were actually escolar, a species that carries a health warning for it purgative effectS
“Consumers are being asked to guess what they are eating,” said Dr. Kimberly Warner, senior scientist at Oceana. “The public should be provided with more information about the food they are purchasing. With such high levels of mislabelling, it is more important than ever for the government to increase inspections and require traceability of our seafood.”
