Evidence-based food provenance

Oceana is a lobbying and research organization closely tied to American Oceans Campaign which was started by the actor/environmentalist Ted Danson.  Oceana has impeccable roots with early funding from The Pew Charitable Trusts, Sandler Foundation, and Rockefeller Brothers Fund.  Their main mission is combating overfishing and helping restore some balance to the world’s fisheries.  This has expanded into reducing plastics in the ecosystem and, more recently, to seafood fraud.

According to Oceana, 47% of seafood that we consume is mis-labelled.  There is some controversy over whether cheaper seafood is simply mis-labelled due to confusion or if it’s fraud and that remains to be determined.  Also, the University of Guelph study found “only” 32% mislabelled.  The UoG study uses DNA barcoding which looks at a short, standardized region of genetic material.  What’s interesting is that the mis-labelling works something like: 17.6% at import, 27.3% at processing and 38.1% at retailers.  (The full article is carefully protected by a solid-gold firewall built by Elsevier.)

The point that I’d like to make is that we now live in an age where we can get results like this.  Prof. Hanner at UoG can run DNA barcoding and get a definitive answer about what the fish species really is.  Newer technologies are becoming available that will eventually allow boat-to-plate traceability.  The resistance, of course, will come from suppliers and will add to processing time and costs as well as creating new black markets.  So, this is still not decided for certain.

How do you feel about the results?  Of 44 samples labelled snapper, 100% were not that species.  The same was true of the 18 samples of yellowtail, and 10 samples of butterfish.  At the other end of the scale, there were 56 samples of salmon and “only” 18% were mislabelled.  Something to think about when you’re putting fish on your dinner menu.

P.S.  When DNA barcoding becomes very inexpensive, will you buy a device to sample your fish before you buy it?  Would you pull it out at a restaurant to check before eating dinner?