Seafood Labels
While purchasing wild-caught fish is the obvious healthy choice, chances are you don’t know where the fish you buy actually comes from. With ineffective national labeling laws, chances are that you are not alone. Features Food & Water Watch Consumer Tools: General Guidelines for Buying Fish, Smart Seafood Guide, and Shrimp Eco-Labels.
Labeling Danger
While purchasing wild-caught fish is the obvious healthy choice, chances are you don’t know where the fish you buy actually comes from. With ineffective national labeling laws, chances are that you are not alone.
Farm-Raised vs. Wild-Caught
Wild-caught fish pose fewer consumer health problems than most farm-raised seafood. But longer-living wild fish do have higher levels of mercury. Most farmed carnivorous finfish, such as salmon, are raised in large corporate-owned cages that threaten wild-fish populations and are contaminated with chemicals that threaten human health. For example, recent studies indicate that farm-raised salmon have higher levels of known cancer-causing chemicals, such as PCB’s.
Ineffective Federal Labeling
In 2005, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) developed mandatory Country Of Origin Labeling rules, which was intended to inform consumers about where seafood comes from and if it is farm-raised or wild-caught. Unfortunately, USDA did not create a strong labeling program.
Consider the following:
- “Processed” seafood is exempt, leaving more than 50% sold in the U.S. without labels;
- 90% of fish sellers, such as wholesale markets, are exempt; and
- No enforcement mechanism exists and violators face paltry fines.
What’s worse, even fish packaged with labels are being mislabeled. A 2005 study revealed that “wild-caught” salmon at six of eight New York City stores was actually farm-raised.
State Safeguards
Faced with non-existent and ineffective federal laws, states have implemented stronger labeling safeguards to protect public health:
- Alaska requires the labeling of all farm-raised halibut, salmon or sablefish – even in restaurants. Alaska also requires labels for genetically-modified farmed fish.
- Since the early 1990s, Washington State has required labeling for farm-raised salmon sold in retail and wholesale fish markets.
- Arkansas and Louisiana require labeling for farmed catfish sold in retail and wholesale markets.
Learn More
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General Guidelines for Buying Fish
Food & Water Watch recommends that consumers take the environmental impacts, socio-economic issues and consumer health implications into consideration when choosing your favorite seafood dinner. Here are our top ten suggestions, followed by more detailed information. -
Shrimp Eco-Labels: What Do They Mean
The ever-expanding shrimp industry has been devastating to the environment and coastal communities throughout many parts of the world. Recognizing this, increasingly conscious consumers are now demanding more sustainably produced shrimp. Unfortunately, the multitude and variety of labels can be confusing, leaving consumers to wonder about each label’s meaning and credibility.
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