As Maryland Blue Crab Season Opens Oceana Reports Widespread Mislabeling is Likely
SEAFOODNEWS.COM [Baltimore Sun] By Catherine Rentz - April 1, 2015 -
[Note: Although the issue of mislabeling is important, in this case Oceana's findings likely apply to restaurant level menuing, and not crabmeat importers. The US tariff code does in fact have a desgination for Callenctes and Potrunidae crabmeat, as well as undesignated crabmeat. The vast majority of crabmeat imported into the US is pasteurized crabmeat in airtight containers. The relative volumes imported under the different codes have not shown any dramatic changes except those based on supply, so whatever is occuring has been industry practice for at least the past 15 years. Meanwhile, the supply of Maryland crabmeat has definitely decreased. [JS]
Here’s a thought for Maryland seafood lovers to sink their teeth into: A survey has found that more than a third of the crab cakes tested at Maryland and Washington, D.C., restaurants were not local blue crab as advertised, but imported crab.
Crab cakes at Baltimore and Annapolis restaurants had the highest rates of mislabeling: 46 percent and 47 percent, respectively, according to the study released today by the conservation group Oceana. The lowest rate, 9 percent, was on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.
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