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Posted on 03/07/2008 7:48:16 PM PST by JACKRUSSELL
When ordering seafood, many of Russell Hohnerlein's customers have the same question: Where did it come from?
Hohnerlein, manager of The 4th of May at 444 Ocean Blvd, St. Simons Island, never has to check a daily serve list to answer.
"All our seafood is local. Always," he said.
Should Sen. Ronnie Chance, R- Fayette, have his way, Hohnerlein won't have to field this question much longer. The answer will be visible to the eye – right there on the menu.
Senate Bill 533, introduced by Chance Wednesday, would require restaurant menus to carry a label on all seafood items identifying the country of origin.
The bill is co-sponsored by five other Republicans in the Senate, including Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick. He is no stranger to the seafood industry. His district includes Georgia's southern coastline, which encompasses a large part of the state's commercial fishing fleet.
"This is just good government," Chapman said, adding that he is confident the bill will make its way into a law. "It benefits and protects the consumer as well as area fishermen. There really is no down side here."
Under Food and Drug Administration regulations, country-of-origin labeling requirements are already required on some seafood, including what's sold at the grocery store and other food outlets. The regulation is beneficial to business, said Frank Owens, manager at City Market at 1508 Gloucester St. in Brunswick.
"A lot of people ask me where my fish is from and I have no problem telling them it's all local and from the states," Owens said. "I think it does make a difference and is important knowing where your food is from."
Ann Friedrich of St. Simons is one such customer. A regular at City Market, she opts to buy her fish there because it is a regional variety.
"I drove over from the island because I know where this fish is coming from," she said. "At the grocery store, it's from Thailand and China. Who knows what all is in that."
Labeling seafood items on menus is already mandated in Arkansas, and similar bills are moving forward in Mississippi and Alabama, said Jeff McCord, a representative with the Catfish Institute.
In recent years, the vast majority of seafood served in America has hailed from farms in Asia. Such imports have lowered the price of seafood, said McCord.
"The price of labor is a lot cheaper in Asia, and the health standards are much lower," he said. "In many cases, fish are, essentially, raised in cesspools."
He said only about 1 percent of food imported in the U.S. is inspected.
Chance's bill would not stop the purchase of seafood from outside the country. It is a mere effort to create a heightened awareness of consumer health issues and encourage the serving of locally-farmed foods, said Eddie Gordon, executive director of the Wild American Shrimp Association.
"It's a win-win situation," Gordon said. "It doesn't keep imported seafood from being sold here, but it does give consumers the tools they need to make their own informed decisions."
Gordon, whose organization supports the promotional campaign that encourages consumers to ask for and to eat seafood caught in local waters, has felt a positive push among consumers recently for more locally grown and farmed foods, including seafood. This bill is reflective of that effort and would hopefully bring the seafood industry up to speed regarding consumer needs, he said.
The price difference between eating locally raised and caught seafood and imported varieties is not drastic and wallets would not be greatly effected should the bill pass, both Gordon and McCord agree.
For shrimp, the price difference between local and imported shrimp is practically nonexistent, Gordon said.
For catfish, the difference usually rings up as about a dollar more per pound for local varieties, McCord said.
Since most restaurants already know the origin of the seafood they serve, adding labels to the menu would not be a difficult task. If anything, Gordon said, it would be an advantage.
"Eating local has become a big movement nationwide," he said. "More and more people are becoming savvy about knowing where their food is from. This requirement could only help restaurants," Gordon said.
In Arkansas, where the requirement has already been enacted, that has proven to be the case, McCord said.
"It's really become a selling point," he said.
At Dressner's Village Cafe, 223 Mallory St., St. Simons Island, the main seafood dish on the menu – grouper – is not farmed locally but instead comes through vendors.
Should the bill pass, Dressner's manager Bob Lowry said he would comply with the new regulations but is unsure how the measure might affect business.
"Our grouper is never local," he said. "But if we are required to list where it's from, then that's what we'll do."
I just wish the calamari I ate tonight had an expiration date on it. I think I’m going to be regretting having eaten it for a couple of days.
I always check where seafood comes from on the container. If it doesn’t say, I don’t buy it. If it says “southeast asia”, I don’t buy it. If it says “farm raised” I don’t buy it. I don’t need government intervention, therefore, except if there is misinformation, then I want someone to sue them.
I want origin on every food label.
It would be nice if they would do that for ALL food, not just restaurants. I haven't eaten any seafood since I first heard about all the junk coming out of China. Unfortunately, I don't live close to the ocean so I can't catch my own, or at least know a local market that buys from local fishermen.
Btw, thanks for all the China pings! :o)
Roger that.
On May 13, 2002, President Bush signed into law the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, more commonly known as the 2002 Farm Bill. One of its many initiatives requires country of origin labeling for beef, lamb, pork, fish, perishable agricultural commodities and peanuts. On January 27, 2004, President Bush signed Public Law 108-199 which delays the implementation of mandatory COOL for all covered commodities except wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish until September 30, 2006. On November 10, 2005, President Bush signed Public Law 109-97, which delays the implementation for all covered commodities except wild and farm-raised and shellfish until September 30, 2008. As described in the legislation, program implementation is the responsibility of USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service.
Yeah, they are really concerned about us. -snicker-
God knows what kind of garbage is served in fast food eateries.
No one is forcing you or anyone to buy or eat at any restaurant. If you all believe the liberal media histeria even though none of you including me have ever had a problem then grow your own food, buy organic, or get a garden or farm. Meanwhile I’ll keep shopping at Wal-Mart and those jerks in congress keep writing laws to grow the government and so they can cripple and crack down on and business and citizens.
I once went to a restaurant that had fresh shrimp on the menu. Ordered the shrimp and one bite told me that they had been frozen. I called the manager to come over and asked him to explain why they were serving frozen shrimp when the menu said they used only fresh shrimp. He said, well, those were fresh shrimp when they were frozen, so they were still fresh when they were unfrozen and cooked. I think my next words were something like “Have you always been a complete idiot or do you just think your customers are idiots?”
If the seafood isn’t fresh, it most likely comes from somewhere in asia and I won’t eat it.
If it doesn’t say “Wild Caught” I don’t buy it.
Farm raised can actually be a good thing. I prefer farm raised catfish for example, because the diet is better controlled and the fish don’t eat any old crap off the bottom. The taste of many farm raised fish is much more consistent.
Same goes with frozen meat. It has a weird taste.
I won’t eat farm raised from Asia. That’s the cesspool thing talking. US farm raised I don’t care about.
I recently bought some canned crab and it said it came from the Phillipines - wild caught. I figured they can’t screw that up too badly so I bought it.
All the other seafood I eat is from here or Northern Europe.
Farm raised catfish can be good, but not near as good as channel cat from a river.
I didn’t say anything was. Wild Caught supposedly indicates it’s of American origin, not foreign. (Notice I said suposedly) If it’s catfish, it better be farm raised, cause otherwise, it just tastes dirty and nasty. As one who moved to the South from the Northeast where I was accustomed to good seafood, it’s the thing I miss the most. All we get here is catfish, catfish and more catfish, occasionally some shrimp on the side. It’s depressing. I would give almost anything for a heaping platter of fried scallops!!!! Not from Thailand or wherever....
Any good restaurants I have been to already tell you this some you need to ask, why make it a law? It would also be hard to print on the menu at some restaurants because the best fish available isn’t always the same place every day .
farm raised = raised in filth ( if in a foreign country )
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