Riz au Lait: The Frenchman's Ultimate Comfort Food
Famous Death Row Last Meals
Photo: Win McNamee / Getty Images
Gulf seafood is still suffering from a lingering black eye. So much so, that earlier this month, 30 members of Congress sent a letter to President Obama urging him to disclose more information on the federal government's seafood safety work.
"Louisiana is suffering from a serious perception problem regarding its seafood, despite the fact that the fish we harvest is consistently being proven to be safe by several federal and state testing agencies," said Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion & Marketing Board.
As recently as December, the seafood board's survey found that 71 percent of consumers still indicated a level of concern about the safety of consuming Gulf seafood.
In their letter to the President, congressional members write: "This lack of public confidence results not from a shortage of government data, but from an ineffectiveness in reporting this complex information to the American public."
"Seafood coming out of the Gulf of Mexico is one of the most tested food products in the world, and the results consistently prove that Gulf seafood is entirely safe to eat," Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana told Slashfood.
Politicians aren't the only ones beating that drum.
Last week, higher-ups at NOAA, the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, and the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals penned an op-ed pointing to the safety of Gulf seafood and their rigorous testing standards. "The seafood has consistently tested 100 to 1,000 times lower than the safety thresholds established by the FDA for the residues of oil contamination," they write.
Christine Patrick, NOAA spokesperson tells Slashfood that 100 percent of the fish sent to market is clean, and points to the government website that links to everything official about seafood safety.
"All the data is there," she says. "The species that were tested, where they came from, where they were caught, and exactly how the seafood was tested. It's completely transparent. Scientists understand how fish handle both oil and dispersant. Fin fish are able to excrete oil. They have the ability to do this the fastest, shrimp a little slower, and shellfish the slowest."
So how much more testing needs to be done to convince the public that Gulf Seafood is safe to eat?
It's not the amount of testing people are uncomfortable with, it's the communication of the testing and the testing results that people didn't understand or they felt wasn't truthful, says Environmental Defense Fund's Tim Fitzgerald.
"The overarching message that came from the government was that everything we've tested was far below levels of concern. That's a different message to reconcile with what the public saw on TV in terms of the disaster -- the extent of the oil, the oiled marshes, the oiled birds, the oiled beaches. Even if it were true, a lot of people have trouble believing it," he says.
- See shocking photos of the massive 2010 oil spill at The Huffington Post.com.
How Kidnapping Suspect Passes Time Behind Bars
Chili's Waitress Fired Over Facebook Post Insulting 'Stupid Cops'
PHOTOS: 10 Deadliest Periods In History (NEW BOOK)
Billboard Music Awards: Worst Dressed (or Most Daring?) From Past Red Carpets
HSBC Plans 14,000 More Job Cuts
These American Companies Refused To Sign The Bangladesh Safety Accord
Forbidden America: Cold War-Era Map Shows No-Go Zones For Soviet Tourists
Man Takes Dump In Background Of Instructional Workout Video
Courtney Stodden Has A Sex Tape
Tenants: Stench of Death Makes St. Louis Complex 'Unlivable'
Famous Roadside Attractions
12 Common Workout Myths Debunked
Hands-on with the Samsung Galaxy S 4 running stock Android 4.2
Taylor Swift Q and A: What Does She Splurge on in Las Vegas?
Teen Who Died During Her First Solo Drive May Have Been Texting
Bill Gates regains title of world's richest person as Microsoft stock hits five-year high
Former OJ Attorney Gives Shocking Testimony
Guess Which State Boasts The Most Million-Dollar Homes?
LOOK: There's Something Wrong With This Picture
Radio Host Makes Shocking Claim About Shooting Hillary Clinton
PHOTO: Looking Good! Chaz Bono Loses 65 Pounds
PREGNANT!
McDonald's Store Owners Fear Fast Food Chain Becoming Too Slow
PHOTO: Rob Kardashian Takes A Hike
New Leads In Case Of Missing British Girl
Will Smith, Jaden Smith Get Photobombed
Jodi Arias' Lawyers Want Out
Waitress Surprised With HUGE Tip On Tiny Bill
Student Shot Dead During Botched Home Invasion
Treasury Officials Told Of IRS Probe In June 2012
LOOK: Khloe K Shows Curves In SKIN TIGHT Dress
Pictures Showing Pregnant Teens' Bumps Banned From Yearbook
3-15-2011 @3:31PM Lisa Watson said... The seafood is NOT safe! It is contaminated and toxic and will remain so for years to come! I wish it were not so. I live on the gulf coast. I will NOT eat the seafood!
Reply
3-16-2011 @8:40AM gobo said... Please, present us your evidence. Thank you.
3-16-2011 @8:18AM LinC said... I live in Alabama, and our seafood is perfectly safe to eat. Anybody who tells you differently is just trying to scare you off so you'll buy Asian seafood. You think theirs is clean and handled under sanitary conditions? Eat Gulf Shrimp!
Reply
3-18-2011 @4:03PM simian77 said... I can understand the pain of the seafood industry, but I *don't* think the seafood is safe. We have no idea where most of the spilled oil went, we have no idea what impact that quantity of oil would have at the microscopic level, and we have no idea what impact those particulate will have on the food chain.
Until scientists provide a *convincing* explanation of the long term effects, I'm staying well clear.
Reply
3-18-2011 @7:58AM maxiesmom067 said... The gulf coast is asking oblamer to lie for them? No problem!!! Sorry folks, I'll MIGHT eat it again after I witness Moochelle feed it to her kids.
Reply
3-20-2011 @5:28PM Bob Roberts said... The problem is we all know we cannot trust the government. They have and continue to put our health and safety second to commercial interests. Ten years from now we may well find that the tests were rigged, inappropriate samples used, results misrepresented, and contrary opinions suppressed.
Reply