Massachusetts Congressmen Ed Markey and Barney Frank have directed questions to the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission Chairman in the wake of a recent Boston Globe multi-part investigation into the mislabeling of seafood, primarily imports, which hurts the domestic seafood industry and deceives consumers.
According to the Congressmen, "Mislabeling … results in consumers' unknowingly eating imported species offish, which directly undermines our local fishermenwho provide fresh, safe, and sustainable seafood. Americans enjoy eating domestic seafood because they can have great confidence in its quality and sustainable catch practices. The practice of deceptive mislabeling is not only attack on consumers, but also the American seafood industry that employs hundreds of thousands of Americans. While there are multiple U.S. laws that aim to ensure that seafood is caught in a sustainable and responsible manner, many market-driven conservation efforts depend on consumers' ability to make informed choices to buy particular species or fish harvested using sustainable fishing practices. This effort becomes nearly impossible when fish are mislabeled and undermines the work and incomes of law-abiding fishermen.Advertising and selling seafood that is mislabeled is not only dishonest, and potentially dangerous, but also would likely be deemed as "unfair and deceptive acts or practices" under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA)"
Read the letter from Congressmen Ed Markey and Barney Frank