Saving Seafood

Justice Department Cracks Down on Fish Fraud

August 21, 2015 — WASHINGTON, DC – A North Carolina seafood processor and wholesale distributor faces a felony conviction, a $100,000 fine, forfeiture of more than 20,000 pounds of shrimp and three years’ probation after Federal prosecutors exposed the company’s shrimp mislabeling scheme.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Law Enforcement, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina joined forces to investigate and prosecute Alphin Brothers Inc., in a case that saw the company admit to falsely labeling tens of thousands of pounds of shrimp.

Read the full story at PerishableNews.com

Trafficking Boss, Accomplices Arrested in Raid on Thai Shrimp Factory

July 13, 2015 — CHIANG MAI, Thailand — A joint task force of Thai police and anti-human trafficking personnel last week arrested five accomplices and the leader of a human trafficking ring near Bangkok, following the rescue of scores of migrants from Burma who had been confined in a shrimp peeling facility.

Maung Htone, a Burmese national from Mon State, was apprehended along with four employment brokers and the owner of the facility, according to a migrant rights advocate who assisted with the operation that freed 64 captive laborers.

“[We] had to go there about three or four times, and we closely observed and took photos before we could raid the factory,” Khun Naung Oo of the Myanmar Association of Thailand (MAT), which works collaboratively with Thai authorities to identify and rescue trafficking victims, told The Irrawaddy.

“Most people dare not go there, as it is a very notorious place.”

The migrants, mostly women from Mon State and Tenasserim Division, were among some 400 employees at the facility, he said. Those removed from the site by a rescue team last Wednesday had been confined in the facility with no work documents.

Read the full story at The Irrawaddy 

 

FLORIDA: More than $20,000 of lobster and shrimp stolen from seafood supplier

July 10, 2015 — MIAMI, Fla. — Friday, customarily a big seafood consumption day, turned into a big seafood theft day at Miami’s Sea Land Distribution.

Thieves plowed a hole in a storage warehouse and stole $20,000 to $30,000 worth of mostly lobster and shrimp overnight. Perpetrators knew not only where but when to execute the heist for maximum take.

It was the first from the restaurant supplier in more than 30 years of business.

LOUISIANA: Bobby Jindal signs bill allowing enforcement of turtle-excluder provisions

July 1, 2015 — Gov. Bobby Jindal signed a bill Wednesday (July 1) repealing a 1987 state law that prohibited Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries agents from enforcing federal turtle-excluder device regulations.

The repeal legislation, which the Louisiana House approved last month 100-0, also was unanimously endorsed by the Louisiana Shrimp Task Force in April after environmental groups have long pushed for better enforcement of the use of such devices in shrimp trawls. Often referred to as TEDs, they create an opening in shrimp nets to allow trapped turtles to escape before they drown.

“Today is a monumental day for our shrimp industry and will show the world that Louisiana fishermen and processors have always been concerned with the successful management of our shrimp fishery,” Mark Abraham, the shrimp task force’s chairman, said in a statement.

Read the full story from The Times-Picayune

 

Whole Foods Once Again Accused of Marking Up Food Prices, Including Shrimp

NEW YORK (AP) — June 25, 2015 — Whole Foods supermarkets have been routinely overcharging customers by overstating the weight of prepackaged meat, dairy and baked goods, New York City’s consumer chief said Wednesday.

The price on a package of coconut shrimp at the upscale market was too high by $14.84, said Department of Consumer Affairs Commissioner Julie Menin. A package of chicken tenders was overpriced by $4.85, and a vegetable platter by $6.15, the department said.

“These overcharges are incredibly troubling,” Menin said, alleging that they continued even after Whole Foods was informed of the city investigation, which began in the fall. The investigation checked the eight Whole Foods markets then open in the city. A ninth has since opened. In all, the Austin, Texas-based chain has 422 stores in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

“We have been meeting with Whole Foods for months,” the commissioner said, “but we repeatedly found problems that were incredibly pervasive.”

Read the full story form the Associated Press at The Big Story