You may have heard some breathless reporting about radiation in tuna recently. But the fact is the actual scientific testing done does not conclude there is a food safety or public health concern related to radiation and tuna of any kind.
For starters the tuna tested was bluefin tuna which is not used in canning. In fact per capita American’s eat about the weight of a few paper clips worth of bluefin tuna each year.
Remember the time journalists misread that CDC report and wrote that imported seafood was a danger and a growing one at that? Right… but then they looked closely at it and found they were conflating illnesses with outbreaks which means the report actually said imported seafood was only responsible for one tenth of one percent of illnesses from all food, not just imports.
Yay, I remember that… sigh.
In 1973, The Washington Post was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for public service for its Watergate investigation, due in large part to its focus on the details. Nearly 40 years, later the digital version of the Post illustrates how far it’s come… or fallen.
The Western Farm Press recently asked in a headline, when does trade and commerce trump food safety? and then linked to a story about the now infamous catfish provision from the 2008 Farm Bill. Cavalierly linking to a Beltway write-up on this wasteful, duplicative inspection program in a manner that suggests Western growers and agribusinesses in the region might consider supporting the provision exposes an unfortunate lack of understanding.
There is little doubt that delicious domestic seafood is an iconic part of America’s wider harvest. Shrimp and oysters from the Gulf of Mexico, salmon from Washington, crabs from Alaska and Lobsters from Maine are as red, white and blue as the oft intoned amber waves of grain. But during this Imports Work for America Week it might be interesting to take a moment and find out just how important imported seafood is to our economy.
A Huffington Post column by Mom’s Clean Air Force Senior Director and Co-Founder Dominique Browning is a perfect example of poorly sourced, emotionally based nutrition advice that scares people away from eating seafood. You really don’t have to go any farther than the title to recognize the absurd rhetoric signaling that the column is bogus: “A Worried Mother Does Better Research Than the FBI.”
In a perfect example of the changing media attitude toward science-based information concerning seafood advice, NFI’s registered dietitian, Jennifer McGuire, was given the opportunity last week to clear up some confusing recommendations from Men’s Health editor Eric Adams. In an earlier interview with local DC radio station WTOP, Adams touted the widely misused FDA seafood guidance for pregnant women as the advice everyone should follow, including the magazine’s largely male audience.
