US chefs call for greater traceability

In a letter to the White House, more than 100 chefs from 41 states and the District of Columbia are calling on the government to expand the Seafood Import Monitoring Program to cover more than just the 13 species currently specified.

“By expanding the Seafood Import Monitoring Program to all species, requiring importers to report additional catch data, and including labour conditions in reporting requirements, NOAA will close loopholes that enable IUU fishing and forced labour,” the letter reads.

“NOAA should also increase traceability throughout the seafood supply chain by requiring catch documentation for all imported seafood and traceability from boat to plate. These measures will allow chefs to confidently stand behind the seafood we serve.”

The SIMP makes documentation mandatory for some species at risk of illegal fishing or fraud. In November 2023, NOAA withdrew a proposal to expand the program which would have increased the number of species covered by up to 8%.

This is now under review after new evidence was unearthed exposing human rights abuses within the global seafood supply chain.

“Chefs don’t want to serve their customers seafood sourced from illegal fishing or human rights abuses,” said Oceana campaign director Dr Max Valentine.

“It’s time for the US government to level the playing field and defend, expand, and strengthen the Seafood Import Monitoring Program, ensuring that all seafood sold in the United States is safe, legally caught, responsibly sourced, and honestly labelled.”