Just as California Senator Barbara Boxer and 500 national chefs take on the widespread issue of seafood fraud by targeting mongers and retail outlets that are mislabeling fish, a local NBC news-team took it to the streets, finding five out of 27 samples of the seafood they purchased were misleading them to believe the fish purchased was something it’s not.
Using a bunch of science-y equipment, investigators were sold so-called red snapper that really turned out to be ocean perch at Gelson’s, Pavillions, and Ralph’s, while rockfish was also found to be mislabeled.
Whole Foods may come with a price tag, but at least it’s not lying about its snapper, as the chain joined San Pedro Fish Market is providing the real thing. Three of the chains caught up in the snare promised to correct the mistake immediately, while Ralph’s, which one would think is trying to establish better trust with customers following recent rakishness, tries to shake the whole thing off by arguing Pacific perch is part of the rockfish family, a truism despite being sold at a significantly lower price on the seafood market and the practice still being against the law.
