North Louisiana Restaurants Busted for Not Disclosing Imported Shrimp

SeaD Consulting, a company specializing in seafood authenticity, recently investigated 24 restaurants in the Monroe and Ruston areas to check the origin of their shrimp. The findings revealed that all of the restaurants served imported shrimp.

Selling imported shrimp in and of itself isn't illegal, but failing to follow federal law requiring them to disclose this information to consumers, is.

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According to David Williams, founder of SeaD Consulting, "At the very minimum, you should have a sign saying, ‘We may or may not serve imported shrimp. Please ask your server.’ And there was no actual signage like that in any of the restaurants we went to.”

Gulf Shrimp Claims Fall Flat

The investigation took a more concerning turn when SeaD Consulting performed genetic testing on the shrimp. Despite the server at seven of the restaurants claiming the shrimp was caught in the Gulf of Mexico, the tests proved they were all imported.

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Williams says this misrepresentation is a significant problem, especially with increasing reports of radioactive material found in imported shrimp. He said, “If you go into a restaurant and you’ll be, ‘Hey, I don’t want to eat imported shrimp,’ and they say that they’re serving you Gulf shrimp and they’re still serving you imported shrimp, then that is a really big issue to me.”

Authenticity Declines Inland

SeaD Consulting's investigation in Monroe and Ruston is part of a broader study that has also included restaurants in Shreveport. Williams noted that the findings in these cities are consistent with a larger trend his company has observed.

Williams said, “As you go north, the further away from the coast you get, the authenticity rate tends to drop down significantly.” He contrasted this with the high authenticity rate along the I-10 corridor, with the New Orleans area having the highest.