Saving Seafood

Omega-3s in Fish Oils Tied to Healthy Aging

October 19, 2018 — Higher blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids, the fats found in fish, are linked to a healthier old age, according to a new study.

Researchers tracked 2,622 adults, average age 74 and healthy at the start of the study, from 1992 to 2015, looking to see if they continued to live without chronic diseases and without mental or physical problems.

The investigators measured blood levels of four common types of omega-3s: EPA and DHA, found in seafood; ALA, derived from plants; and DPA, which the body produces in small amounts.

After adjusting for many medical, dietary and lifestyle factors, they found that compared with people in the lowest one-fifth for omega-3 levels, those in the highest one-fifth had an 18 percent lower risk of unhealthy aging. The study appeared in BMJ.

Considered separately, EPA and DPA were associated with lowered risk of unhealthy aging, but DHA and ALA were not.

Read the full story at The New York Times

John McCain urges delay in new catfish inspection rules

September 1, 2017 — Sen. John McCain is mounting a last-minute plea to the U.S. Department of Agriculture to delay implementation of new catfish inspection rules slated to fully kick in Friday, saying all catfish inspections should be returned to the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration.

Mr. McCain said the new inspection regime under the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is a thinly-disguised trade barrier against Asian catfish imports at the hands of domestic farmers in southern states.

“This wasteful program is a classic example of shortsighted, anti-free market protectionism at its worst,” Mr. McCain wrote in a letter to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue this week.

“I request that you delay implementation of the USDA Catfish Inspection Program until Congress has an opportunity to reverse this duplicative, wasteful program,” he wrote.

Most fish is inspected by the FDA, but Congress — led by southern Republicans looking to protect their state’s industry — included language in the 2008 Farm bill that set the stage to transfer catfish inspections to a more intrusive process under FSIS.

Read the full story at the Washington Times

USDA to Host Listening Session of Catfish Rules Friday in Webster, Florida

SFA Members to Voice Concerns of Industry

August 24, 2017 — The following was released by the Southeastern Fisheries Association:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Food Safety Inspection Service will host a public “listening session” on new catfish inspection rules this Friday, August 25, in Webster, Florida. Members of the Southeastern Fisheries Association (SFA) will join other members of the industry in voicing their concerns over the new rules, which threaten the future of wild-caught U.S. catfish.

On September 1, the USDA will implement new inspection rules for catfish. Designed for catfish imported from large fish farms in Asia, the rules will also apply to small, domestic fish houses that land wild-caught catfish. Many of these small-scale operations will be unable to absorb the costs that these new regulations will impose, which may force them out of the catfish industry completely.

“There is no reason that small, local fisheries should be treated the same as large, industrial fish farms,” said Bob Jones, Executive Director of SFA. “These new rules will unnecessarily hurt small, rural businesses and decrease the availability of U.S.-caught seafood.”

In addition to being a financial burden on many small catfish harvesters, SFA believes that these rules are also unnecessary and duplicative. The Food and Drug Administration already inspects imported seafood and ensures that it meets all health and safety standards. The new USDA program increases will increase the regulatory burden on many fishermen without producing better results.

The following members from the Southeastern Fisheries Association will be in attendance:

  • Jimmy Hull – Chairman of the Board, Hull’s Seafood, Ormond Beach, Fl.
  • Peter Jarvis – President, Triar Seafood, Hollywood, Florida
  • Tony Lombardi – Vice President, Lombardi’s Seafood, Orlando, Florida
  • Mike Merrifield – Fish Section Chairman, Wild Ocean Seafood, Titusville, Florida
  • Jim Busse – Leadership Team, Seafood Atlantic, Cape Canaveral, Florida
  • Ben Williams – Leadership Team, retired fisherman, dealer, processor
  • Bob Jones, Executive Director, Southeastern Fisheries Association, Tallahassee, Florida

The listening session will be held from 10:00am to 4:00pm at the Florida Bass Conservation Center, at 2583 CR 788 in Webster, Florida.

About the Southeastern Fisheries Association

The SFA has served the commercial fishing industry for over 60 years. SFA’s mission is to defend, protect and enhance the commercial fishing industry in the southeastern United States for present participants as well as future generations through all legal means while maintaining healthy and sustainable stocks of fish. SFA is headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida.

Read the release here

FDA, EPA Release Final Fish Consumption Advice

January 24, 2017 — The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have issued final advice regarding fish consumption, with the aim of helping pregnant women and those of childbearing years, along with breastfeeding mothers and parents of young children, make better choices about healthy and safe-to-eat fish, including shellfish.

To simplify the selection process, the agencies have created a reference chart (pictured) that sorts 62 types of fish into three categories: “Best choices” (two to three weekly servings recommended), “Good choices” (one weekly serving), and “Fish to Avoid.” According to FDA and EPA, “Best Choices” fish make up almost 90 percent of fish consumed in the United States.

An FDA analysis of fish consumption data discovered that half of pregnant women surveyed ate fewer than 2 ounces a week, much less than the recommended amount. Because the nutritional advantages of fish consumption are key to healthy development during pregnancy and early childhood, the agencies are advising two to three weekly servings of lower-mercury fish for pregnant women and women who may become pregnant, or 8 to 12 ounces. However, since all fish contain at least traces of mercury, which can be harmful to the brain and nervous system after prolonged exposure, the maximum level of consumption recommended in the final advice is still the previously recommended weekly level of 12 ounces, consistent with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

For adults, a usual serving is 4 ounces of fish, measured before cooking, while serving sizes for children should be smaller and adjusted by age and total calorie needs. The agencies recommend that children eat fish once or twice weekly, chosen from a variety of species.

Read the full story at the Progressive Grocer

New FDA seafood consumption guidelines criticized by NFI

January 19, 2017 — U.S. seafood leaders and suppliers are expressing concern about new governmental guidelines issued Wednesday, 18 January regarding seafood consumption among pregnant women, parents and other consumers.

The new final advice document from the Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency is meant to help women who are pregnant or may become pregnant – as well as breastfeeding mothers and parents of young children – decide which fish are healthy to eat. To that end, the agencies divided 62 types of seafood into three categories: “Best choices” (eat two to three servings a week), “Good choices” (eat one serving a week) and “Fish to avoid.”

Fish on the “Best choices” list account for more than 90 percent of the fish consumed in the U.S., according to the agencies. Best choices include salmon, pollock, anchovy, herring, Atlantic mackerel, lobster, scallop, shrimp, tilapia, catfish and canned light (skipjack) tuna. Good choices, which should be eaten once a week, include Chilean sea bass, halibut, carp, rockfish, snapper, Yellowfin tuna and albacore tuna.

Fish that should be avoided – because they contain the highest mercury levels – include King mackerel, orange roughy, marlin, shark, swordfish, bigeye tuna and tilefish from the Gulf of Mexico, according to the FDA and EPA.

However, the National Fisheries Institute (NFI) issued a statement criticizing the guidelines, calling them “confusing.”

The new advice “runs the risk of confusing moms and nutrition professionals alike,” the NFI said. “With lists, categories and an unclear message that includes suggestions on how often to eat buffalofish, weakfish and sheepshead, the advice has nutrition professionals scratching their heads.”

“Clear, concise direction that encourages pregnant women to eat more fish for optimal baby brain and eye development is a science-based message that’s needed. I don’t see that message in this document,” said Rima Kleiner, registered dietitian with the NFI. “FDA numbers show that pregnant women eat less than two ounces of fish per week as it is. The FDA’s clinical goal, originally, was to increase that number. That message is lost in this advice.”

Read the full story at Seafood Source

FDA finds Listeria in facility; fish company recalls salmon

September 27th, 2016 — A New York company is recalling an undisclosed amount of smoked salmon from retailers and restaurants because federal inspectors found Listeria monocytogenes at the company’s production facility.

Mt. Kisco Smokehouse of Mt. Kisco, NY, recalled two lots of whole Atlantic smoked salmon and four lots of sliced Atlantic salmon Monday, according to a notice posted by the Food and Drug Administration.

The company distributed the implicated fish to retailers and restaurants in two states, New York and Connecticut, between Sept. 6 and 16.

No illnesses had been reported in relation to the recalled fish as of Monday.

“The potential for contamination was noted after routine testing by the FDA inspection revealed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes in floor drains and cracks in the floor,” according to the recall notice.

“The production of the product has been suspended while FDA and the company continue to investigate the source of the problem.”

Read the full story at Food Safety News

‘Wasteful’ catfish inspection program costing taxpayers millions, tough to kill

May 31, 2016 — The way Congress’ chief watchdog describes it, the government’s plan to set up a new catfish inspection process is one of the clearest examples of wasteful spending in the federal budget.

Yet killing the catfish inspection program is proving to be tremendously difficult for all the usual Washington reasons: a powerful patron in Congress, a weak administration controlling the agencies and a pliant Congress happy to limp into the next election on autopilot.

The cost-cutters did win a round last week when deficit-hawk Republicans linked arms with Democrats who were eager to find places to trim the budget. Combined, they voted 55-43 to stop the duplicate catfish inspection by the Food Safety and Inspection Service and shift it back to the Food and Drug Administration, which had been handling it for years.

But victory for the cost-cutters is anything but assured. The House must still vote, and then the change must survive President Obama’s veto pen.

Read the full story from The Washington Times 

From Ocean to Plate: Ensuring Traceable Supply Chain in the Seafood Industry

May 18, 2016 — In 2013, the ‘horsemeat scandal’ sent tremors through the European food industry. The fraudulent replacement of beef with cheaper equine alternatives in burgers and convenience food left consumers and retailers reeling, alarmed that they had fallen victim to the largest food fraud in decades.

The scandal not only highlighted the shortcuts being made by food manufacturers in their attempts to compete for the lowest price, it emphasized the complexity of global food supply chains and the challenges in monitoring every step. Almost overnight, the importance of traceability—the ability to track any food through all stages of production, processing and distribution—became high on public and political agendas.

‘Food scandals’ can leave consumers feeling duped, misled and distrustful of retailers and brands. They can also lead to people eating foods that violate their religious or moral values; or worse still   have impacts on their health.

Recognizing the negative impacts of incorrect labelling, governments around the world have responded. The Food Standards Agency in the UK, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the European Food Safety Authority and Food Standards Australia New Zealand, to name a few, commit extensive resources to ensuring the safety and correct labelling of our food. But the problem persists—and responsibility is often laid at the feet of food suppliers.

Read the full story at Food Safety Magazine

FDA rejects much imported seafood containing ‘filth’

April 13, 2016 — “Don’t wait until you get sick to start ask questions about where your shrimp is coming from,” cautions David Veal, president of the American Shrimp Processors Association, which is based in Biloxi.

This comes after a new U.S. Department of Agriculture analysis shows the Food and Drug Administration rejects thousands of imported seafood shipments each year because the fish is unfit to eat.

Between 2005 and 2013, nearly 18,000 shipments were refused entry into the United States for containing unsafe levels of “filth,” veterinary-drug residues and salmonella, the ASPA said. “Filth” is used to describe anything that shouldn’t be in food, such as rat feces, parasites, illegal antibiotics and glass shards. Salmonella can make consumers sick, leading to hospitalization and even death.

“The safety of imported seafood clearly continues to be of significant concern, based on the number of shipments refused by FDA,” the USDA said in a summary of its findings.

See the rest of the story at the Sun Herald

RON SMOLOWITZ: Working the system makes the system unworkable

April 4, 2016 — FALMOUTH, Mass. — As the owner of Coonamessett Farm in Falmouth and a partner at the Woods Hole Oyster Co., I spend as much time navigating regulatory hurdles as I do tending the farm or going to sea. Many farmers and fishermen have similar fights with overbearing bureaucracy, something likely to become more common as the noose of government regulations tightens.

The most recent regulatory push in Massachusetts is to ban the farming of caged chickens. I theoretically stand to benefit from this, as my free-ranged eggs would increase in value. But this doesn’t consider the regulatory system that will be imposed on my farm to ensure compliance. My farm currently allows visitors to pick their own eggs, an activity that kids enjoy but that will be illegal, I’m sure, under any regulations. The federal Food Safety Modernization Act, a result of food safety advocates working the system in Washington, continues to evolve as the Food and Drug Administration encounters hurdles to its enforcement. In some respects it resembles the farm animal protection initiative being advocated in Massachusetts, but it targets every crop on the farm. Looking at the FDA’s guidelines, I don’t think I can find a workaround to keep farming and sell to the public. I certainly won’t be able to allow the public on the farm or be allowed to keep my farm animals, given concerns about the proximity of animal dung to farm crops.

Things aren’t much better out at sea. I do a substantial amount of research for the scallop industry, and sustainability is the key reason scallop management is a continued successes. Through a system of rotational management, certain zones are fished while others are left off-limits to allow them to repopulate. Much as with farmland, this system allows the resources to remain sustainable.

Read the full column at the Cape Cod Times