Reading time; 2 pages, 288 words, 1 to 2 minutes plus links.

Fish eaters take note, especially Sushi lovers. What you’re eating may NOT be tuna. Although this article covers the American market, I suspect the same deception happens world-wide.

Below is a copy of The Atlantic article.

Gerold

59% of the “Tuna” Americans Eat Is Not Tuna

The Atlantic
By Christopher Mims
Feb 22 2013

“Nonprofit ocean protection group Oceana took 1,215 samples of fish from across the United States and genetically tested them in order to bring us the following astonishing facts:
• “59% of the fish labeled “tuna” sold at restaurants and grocery stores in the US is not tuna.
• “Sushi restaurants were far more likely to mislabel their fish than grocery stores or other restaurants.”

“What’s for dinner at your local sushi joint? Pretty much anything but what’s on the menu. Oceana”

• “In Chicago, Austin, New York, and Washington DC, every single sushi restaurant sampled sold mislabeled tuna.

• “84% of fish samples labeled “white tuna” were actually escolar, a fish that can cause prolonged, uncontrollable, oily anal leakage.

• “The only fish more likely to be misrepresented than tuna was snapper, which was mislabeled 87% of the time, and was in actuality any of six different species.

“If you’ve ever wondered why the sushi in the display case is so affordable, given the
dire state of the world’s tuna supply, well, now you know.”

[Gerold comment] according to this oily anal leakage link, the fish Escolar is sometimes called “butterfish,” “oilfish,” or “waloo/walu” and Sushi restaurants sometimes call it “super white tuna” or “king tuna.”

Japan and Italy have banned it. Canada, Sweden and Denmark allow its importation but require warning labels.

Also, serving sizes less than six ounces should not cause embarrassing distress. However, nothing was said about body size so take six ounces with a grain of salt (no pun intended).

Gerold
March 2, 2013

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