State Department Suspends Mexico’s Section 609 Shrimp Certification
In a Federal Register notice published Friday, the U.S. Department of State announced that it was suspending the certification made, pursuant to Section 609 of Public Law 101-162, of the commercial shrimp fishery in Mexico. In its announcement, the State Department explained that the agency suspended Mexico’s certification because “its sea turtle protection program is no longer comparable to that of […]
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Recently Published Academic Studies Highlight the Importance of Monitoring Antimicrobial-Resistant Pathogens in Imported Shrimp
When President Trump signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2019 into law last month, the bill provided the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with “$500,000 to test Antibiotic Resistance in Imported Seafood.” By specifically funding a testing program, Congress emphasized the importance of detecting and monitoring antimicrobial pathogens on imported seafood, including shrimp. Congress’s creation of a new testing program coincides […]
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News Alert: Murky Waters
Like everyone else with an e-mail address, I get forwarded a lot of links to videos that I am encouraged to watch. Some are of the antics of adorable kids or pets, some are of remarkable sporting achievements, some are short patriotic films, some are of crackpots explaining why a politician is either a charlatan or messiah. Some I enjoy, […]
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Japanese and Canadian Governments: Vietnamese Farmed Seafood Imports Unsafe
The Southern Shrimp Alliance today released the results of the organization’s review of the actions taken by the governments of Japan and Canada to address the continued presence of harmful drug residues in Vietnamese seafood exports. In a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Southern Shrimp Alliance reported that Vietnamese shrimp product exports contaminated with antibiotics […]
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Southern Shrimp Alliance Condemns Mislabeling on U.S. Shrimp Packages
Tarpon Springs, Fla.– As the result of a four-week investigation organized by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, government officials in 17 states reported finding that ice was fraudulently included as part of the labeled weight of seafood sold to consumers, including U.S. wild-caught shrimp. The Southern Shrimp Alliance commends the responsible state officials for investigating this deceptive commercial practice that […]
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Testimony to Congress Denounces FDA Reliance on Self-Policing Instead of Testing
Tarpon Springs, FL—John Williams, a member of the U.S. shrimp industry for 37 years and executive director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA), testified today before the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the Commerce and Energy Committee that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relies too heavily on U.S. importers to protect the U.S. food supply. Williams […]
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Shrimp Industry Welcomes Congressional Attention to Seafood Safety
Tarpon Springs, FL—The Southern Shrimp Alliance (SSA) applauds increased Congressional actions to address the problem of imported farm-raised shrimp that are contaminated with illegal antibiotics and chemicals. The legislative attention follows the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) import alert regarding adulterated seafood products and public scrutiny of the FDA’s ability to inspect 1% of food imports. “Legislation to strengthen seafood […]
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U.S. Shrimpers Applauds Alabama Ban of Chinese Catfish, Calls for Increased Testing of Imported Seafood Nationwide
Tarpon Springs, FL— The Southern Shrimp Alliance (“SSA”) applauds the action of Alabama Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks to protect consumers by banning the sale of catfish from China after illegal antibiotics were found in the majority of food safety tests. In light of the Food and Drug Administration’s (“FDA”) failure to sufficiently test imported seafood for contaminants, SSA is calling […]