Washington, D.C. — The Obama administration released a final rule to implement the Seafood Import Monitoring Program that requires seafood traceability from initial harvest to first point of sale for 13 at-risk species sold in U.S. commerce. The species include: Atlantic cod; blue crab; dolphinfish; grouper; king crab; Pacific cod; red snapper; sea cucumber; sharks; swordfish; and tuna. Implementation will be delayed for shrimp and abalone. CAP’s Director of Ocean Policy Michael Conathan issued the following statement:
Requiring traceability for these 13 species is a powerful and positive first step toward ensuring that law-abiding American fishermen are not undersold by illegally harvested products and to help ensure that our seafood is safe, accurately labeled, and sustainably caught. Yet it’s particularly disappointing that the administration could not find a way to include shrimp—a product associated with documented cases of slave labor and human trafficking—in this rule. We must continue to demand action to identify and shut down the market for illegally harvested and processed seafood once and for all.
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For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.