Saving Seafood

Foodservice Associations, NFI Praise PLUS Act Aimed at COVID-19 Relief for Distributors

July 23, 2020 — Representatives Darin LaHood (R-IL) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) introduced the Providing Liquidity for Uncollectible Sales (PLUS) Act. The legislation, which provides a tax credit to offset uncollectable debt incurred due to COVID-19 shutdowns, received support from the United Fresh Produce Association, the International Food Distributors Association (IFDA), and National Fisheries Institute (NFI).

Shutdowns lead to significant losses in the foodservice distribution sector as restaurants and other entities were unable to pay distributors for products. According to the NFI, these losses piled up to over $12 billion, with seafood distributors noting that $2.2 billion in debt owed to them, produce noted a $5 billion tab and broadline distributors also saw a $5 billion number.

Read the full story at Seafood News

NFI’s Robert DeHaan takes a seat on the US Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee

July 21, 2020 — National Fisheries Institute (NFI) Vice President for Government Affairs Robert DeHaan has been appointed to the U.S. Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee.

DeHaan’s appointment was announced by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on 17 July. As a part of the committee, DeHaan will provide advice to the government on trade policy matters such as the operation of existing trade agreements and the negotiation of news ones, NFI said in a press release.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

Robert DeHaan Appointed to U.S. Trade Advisory Committee

July 17, 2020 — The following was released by the National Fisheries Institute:

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer today announced the appointment of Robert DeHaan to the Agricultural Technical Advisory Committee that covers trade in animal products. DeHaan is the Vice President for Government Affairs at the National Fisheries Institute.

Advisory committees provide advice to the Government on trade policy matters, including the operation of existing trade agreements and the negotiation of new ones.

“This is a great opportunity for the seafood community to have a seat at the table where trade decisions are made,” said DeHaan. “I’m thrilled to be able to bring our industry’s perspective and guidance to the people in charge of trade policy.”

\Before joining NFI in 2011, DeHaan served as Special Counsel to the Deputy U.S. Trade Representative as well as Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of Transportation.

“Bob knows his way around government and trade. This appointment is tailor made for his assets,” said NFI President John Connelly. “We are pleased that those responsible for carrying out U.S. trade policy as it relates to such an important part of our economy will have him as a resource.”

DeHaan will serve on the Advisory Committee until 2024.

FDA beefs up food safety guidelines and announces plans to resume inspections

July 15, 2020 — The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) new food safety guidelines include utilizing technology to enhance traceability, responding more quickly to outbreaks, and other factors affecting the seafood industry.

This New Era of Smarter Food Safety blueprint represents a “new approach to food safety, leveraging technology and other tools to create a safer and more digital, traceable food system,” the agency said on its website.

Read the full story at Seafood Source

National Fisheries Institute Statement on the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee Report

July 15, 2020 — The following was released by the National Fisheries Institute:

The National Fisheries Institute commends the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee for its work in submitting its Scientific Report to the Secretaries of Agriculture and Health and Human Services.

The Committee’s review of the science supports advice to eat 8-12 ounces of seafood weekly, particularly before, during and after pregnancy. The report highlights that only 20 percent of adults and 6 percent of children meet the goal of eating seafood twice per week.

The report notes a healthy diet should “provide good sources of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, such as seafood, beginning at ages 6 to 12 months.”

The report is one more piece of evidence that Americans of all ages should eat seafood more frequently. As part of a healthy dietary pattern, seafood offers a lifetime of benefits from brain development among babies to heart health and a healthy weight for adults. The report even notes the link between diet-related diseases –which regular seafood consumption can help prevent – and increased susceptibility to the current global pandemic.

It will be vital that the final Guidelines use simple, consistent language to communicate actionable recommendations that result in increased seafood consumption, in order to realize the associated public health benefits.

Accredited nutrition experts like the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee continue to distinguish seafood as a food with benefits for all ages.

National Fisheries Institute Statement on the FDA’s Smarter Food Safety Blueprint

July 14, 2020 — The following was released by the National Fisheries Institute:

Yesterday’s announcement of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) New Era of Smarter Food Safety blueprint demonstrates how the agency plans to rapidly evolve its regulatory approach in an age of unprecedented technological advancement.

Forecasting unique demands on the future value chain will help FDA identify and whenever possible neutralize challenges. In just the past few months, the seafood market has changed and the seafood community and FDA have worked to keep our food supply safe with a rigorous yet flexible approach.

We are pleased to see the Trump Administration embracing a food safety framework for the future that is both smart and safe.

Bloomberg Corrects Record on China’s Shrimp and COVID-19 Story

July 13, 2020 — The following was released by the National Fisheries Institute:

Bloomberg, the giant media company with reporters in more than 100 countries, has corrected its piece originally titled, “China Signals Shrimp Virus Risk After Salmon Debacle.” Reporting on China’s General Administration of Customs announcement, the article erroneously claimed COVID-19 tests found the virus on “both the inside and outside of… shrimp packaging.”

The National Fisheries Institute (NFI) reached out to the reporting team and their editors to point out the positive COVID-19 tests were found inside the shipment container, not inside the product’s packaging.

“There was genuine confusion caused by this inaccurate reporting,” said NFI’s Senior Director of Communications and Advocacy, Brandon Phillips.  “This was not an issue of semantics. It was an issue of specificity.  Reports of a positive test on a shipping container as opposed to inside a product’s packaging are two very different stories.”

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) have been clear that COVID-19 is not a food borne illness. In June, the FDA and USDA released a joint statement that said, “Efforts by some countries to restrict global food exports related to Covid-19 transmission are not consistent with the known science of transmission.” Further, the statement read there’s, “no evidence that people can contract Covid-19 from food or from food packaging.”

“We’re disappointed that Bloomberg didn’t get the facts right the first time but we applaud them for correcting their mistake,” said Phillips. “Seafood continues to be a safe, healthy and available food that consumers should choose.”

National Fisheries Institute Statement on COVID19 and the Safety of Imported Shrimp

July 10, 2020 — The following was released by the National Fisheries Institute:

Today the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China suspended imports and ordered recalls of frozen shrimp from three Ecuadorian companies after the government claimed “outer packaging…were at risk of being contaminated by the new coronavirus.”

But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has been clear that there is no known transmission of the novel coronavirus from “food or food packaging”, and that there is “no reason to be concerned” about the virus passing in this way.  Guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and the European Food Safety Agency reinforce this finding.

In fact, the Chinese Customs announcement states they found no evidence of the virus on the inner packaging of the samples they tested, nor on the shrimp itself.

In addition, the Chinese government emphasized humans would not get COVID from the shrimp, stating, “Experts judged that the result of the detection did not mean that it was transmissive.”

Governments should follow the advice of the World Health Organization, which states, “Food has not been implicated in the transmission of COVID-19” and continues “testing of food or food surfaces for this virus is not recommended.”

Simply stated global public health experts continue to state that humans will not get coronavirus from frozen food or its packaging.  Stating, implying, or reporting otherwise is just wrong.

NFI: Food workers should receive COVID-19 vaccine early on

June 25, 2020 — The National Fisheries Institute and other food industry groups are urging U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to prioritize food, agriculture, and retail workers for receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

“Scientists have advised that COVID-19 will remain a continuous public health concern, so the importance of a vaccine cannot be overstated. A vaccine targeting COVID-19 is likely the only way to generate immunity across a population,” NFI, FMI – the Food Industry Association, the National Restaurant Association, and other groups said in a letter to Trump.

Read the full story at Seafood Source