Saving Seafood

HAWAII: How new federal tuna fraud law will impact Hawaii customers

October 28, 2026 — A new federal law is putting the spotlight on Hawaii’s fishing industry to keep illegally caught tuna out of the marketplace.

The Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act was signed into law Oct. 15 by President Donald Trump, and was co-introduced by U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Katie Britt, R-Alabama, Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, and Roger Wicker, R-Mississippi.

The new law calls for a standard procedure to identify where red snapper and certain tuna species come from, including the development of a field test kit that can determine whether fish were caught in U.S. or foreign waters.

Read the full article at Hawaii News Now

Hawaii fishing industry applauds new federal law targeting tuna fraud

October 21, 2026 — A bipartisan measure that aims to prevent seafood fraud is now federal law.

President Donald Trump signed into law Oct. 15, the Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act, led by U.S. Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Katie Britt, R-Alabama, Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, and Roger Wicker, R-Mississippi.

New test to verify origin

The new law calls for a standard procedure to identify where red snapper and certain tuna species come from, including the development of a field test kit that can determine whether fish were caught in U.S. or foreign waters.

The process will allow law enforcement to intercept illegally caught or falsely labeled fish before they enter U.S. markets, officials said.

“Our new law will give law enforcement a powerful new tool to detect where ahi comes from, help prevent seafood fraud, and give consumers better, more accurate information on what they’re buying and eating,” Schatz said.

Trump signs seafood testing bill into law

October 20, 2026 — U.S. President Donald Trump signed the Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act into law 15 October.

“Red snapper is one of the most well-managed and profitable fish in the Gulf, but illegal fishing by Mexican lanchas puts law-abiding U.S. fishermen and seafood producers at a competitive disadvantage,” Senate Commerce Republicans said in a social media post. “Now that this bipartisan bill is law, it will allow federal and state law enforcement officers to utilize technology that determines the country of origin for certain species of fish, and confiscate any such illegally caught fish before sale in the United States.”

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US Congress sends Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act to Trump

September 25, 2026 — U.S. Congress has sent the Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act to President Donald Trump to be signed into law after the Senate agreed to changes made to the legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The legislation aims to enable law enforcement to test where seafood products originated from, helping officers suss out products harvested through illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource

US bill would create new method for testing red snapper and tuna country of origin

January 31, 2025 — United States senators have introduced legislation that would task the federal government with developing a new methodology for identifying where tuna and red snapper sold in the U.S. originated from.

If passed, the Illegal Red Snapper and Tuna Enforcement Act would direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and NOAA with creating a field test kit that uses a chemical agent to determine whether red snapper or certain species of tuna originated in foreign waters.

Read the full article at SeafoodSource