Saving Seafood

LOUISIANA: Grocery stores criticized by Louisiana senators for selling possibly tainted shrimp

November 10, 2025 — Louisiana Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and John Kennedy (R-La.) are worried about the safety of imported shrimp sold in major grocery stores nationwide.

The senators sent letters this week to the CEOs of Walmart, Kroger, and Albertsons, saying the stores continue to sell imported shrimp that could contain Cesium-137, a radioactive substance linked to cancer and other health problems

“Ensuring that American families have access to safe, quality food is essential for us to advance President Trump’s agenda to Make America Healthy Again,” the senators wrote.

Read the full article at Yahoo! News

Judge dismisses lawsuit claiming South Carolina restaurants sold imported shrimp under false claims it was local

November 5, 2025 — A federal judge has dismissed the lawsuit brought by the South Carolina Shrimpers Association, which alleged that local restaurants had violated federal and state law in selling imported shrimp.

“We are incredibly disappointed that a judge dismissed our ‘Shrimpgate’ lawsuit, denying us the chance to present the undisputed DNA evidence of shrimp fraud in the Lowcountry,” the association said in a statement. “This ruling hurts shrimpers, consumers, and the many honest restaurants that work hard to serve you real local shrimp. Once again, it feels like big money is winning over the truth.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Meet the scientist exposing shrimp fraud across the South. ‘I’m a little bit of an evangelist.’

October 24, 2025 — Dave Williams has been to hundreds of seafood restaurants across the South over the past year, and he isn’t hunting for the best shrimp po-boy or crawfish étouffée.

From Texas to North Carolina — and at more than 200 restaurants and three festivals in Louisiana — the commercial fisheries scientist and his team have collected minuscule shrimp samples for a rapid genetic test. The goal is to determine whether the restaurant is serving local shrimp or foreign imports. It’s all part of Williams’ mission to help revitalize the Gulf of Mexico’s ailing coastal industry.

Williams, who does this work through his company SeaD Consulting, presented his findings to Louisiana shrimpers and seafood enthusiasts at the Louisiana Shrimp Festival and Shrimp Aid at the Broadside in Mid-City earlier this month. Attendees sampled dishes like shrimp birria tacos and tempura-fried shrimp, while listening to live music and even watching a puppet show.

Read the full article at NOLA

DNA testing of Gulf Coast restaurants’ shrimp reveals continued mislabeling

October 23, 2025 —  A follow-up investigation conducted by SeaD Consulting using its RIGHTTest™ (Rapid ID Genetic High-Accuracy Test) has revealed new insights into shrimp sourcing integrity at Gulf Coast restaurants.

The retesting, part of an ongoing regional study supported by the Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA), found both encouraging signs of progress and persistent misrepresentation in the labeling and sourcing of shrimp served to local diners.

SeaD Consulting was previously commissioned by the SSA in March this year to conduct genetic tests on shrimp dishes from 44 restaurants in Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Foley.

Fifty percent of restaurants from SeaD’s March’s DNA testing were randomly selected for follow-up. Of the 22 restaurants retested this month, findings show that 10 out of 22 were serving imports (46%) compared to 19 out of 44 (43%) previously tested in March 2025.

In October last year, Alabama legislators enacted the Alabama Seafood Labeling Law, which requires establishments to disclose the country of origin and whether seafood is wild-caught or farm-raised. The Alabama Department of Public Health is tasked with enforcing this law.

Read the full article at Gulf Coast Media

ALABAMA: A year after embarrassing results, DNA testing returns to Alabama shrimp festival

October 10, 2025 — The National Shrimp Festival, taking place in Gulf Shores, Alabama, U.S.A., will now require all shrimp being sold at the four-day event to be tested to ensure they are local, wild-caught shellfish after random sampling at last year’s event found foreign shrimp being sold by multiple vendors.

“It’s important for everyone – distributors, processors, restaurants, and festivals – to ensure they are serving the wild-caught local shrimp they claim to offer,” Henry Barnes, the mayor of Bayou La Batre, Alabama, said in a release. “Our community depends on it. When a festival like this leads with authenticity, it sets a standard for everyone else to follow.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Report highlights problem of Mexican shrimp laundering, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership says more work needed

October 7, 2025 — The Sustainable Fisheries Partnership has welcomed a new international report highlighting the issue of Mexican shrimp laundering, although the organization – which has been working on the issue since 2018 – notes that there is much work to be done to tackle the ongoing problem.

“I was very hopeful that when the report came out it would really push things forward, but you know, it made the news the first couple of days and then it all died down,” SFP Director of Supply Chain Roundtables Megan Westmeyer told SeafoodSource. “This sort of thing needs continuous pressure from buyers who are using this product.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

Indonesia confirms radioactive shrimp linked to contamination at steel plant, assures exports safe

October 3, 2025 — The Indonesian government has confirmed traces of radioactive Cesium-137 (Cs-137) detected in shrimp products were linked to a steel factory in an industrial zone in Banten province, but said the incident has not affected the integrity of the country’s seafood supply chain or exports.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration first issued an advisory that it detected Cs-137 in a shipping container at the ports of Los Angeles, Houston, Savannah, and Miami in August. Imported shrimp, processed by Indonesia-based PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati, was inside the containers, leading to initial recalls as radiation was detected in both the shrimp packaging, and in the shipping containers.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

More potentially radioactive frozen shrimp recalled. See list.

September 8, 2025 — The Food and Drug Administration announced another recall for shrimp due to possible radioactive contamination.

In August, the FDA announced four recalls (one of which was updated on Friday, Aug. 29, to include best-by dates) for frozen shrimp due to potential radionuclide (Cesium-137) contamination. Cesium-137, also known as Cs-137, is a man-made radioactive isotope that can lead to an elevated risk of cancer if ingested, the FDA states.

Various brands of frozen shrimp sold throughout the country voluntarily issued the recalls. As of Friday, Sept. 4, no illnesses had been reported in conjunction with the recalls.

Read the full article at USA TODAY

String of frozen shrimp recalls related to radioactive material may be linked to Indonesia industrial site

September 8, 2025 — Astring of frozen shrimp recalls related to the discovery of radioactive material may be connected to an industrial site in Indonesia, the Associated Press reported.

Multiple U.S. companies have issued recalls for frozen shrimp due to possible contamination with Cesium-137 (Cs-137), a man-made radioisotope. Companies began issuing recall advisories in late August, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) followed it up with a voluntary recall after U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) detected Cs-137 in multiple shipping containers at the ports of Los Angeles, Houston, Savannah, and Miami.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource