Study: 30 percent of U.S. shrimp is mislabeled

Study: 30 percent of U.S. shrimp is mislabeled
(Image credit: iStock)

Yes, shrimp is delicious. But do you really know where that scampi came from?

A new study from marine conservation advocacy group Oceana found that 30 percent of U.S. shrimp products in restaurants and grocery stores may be mislabeled. That could mean being called the wrong shrimp species, or inaccurately being referred to it as "wild" rather than farmed. Oceana tested 143 shrimp products from 111 restaurants and grocery stores across the country to reach the study's conclusion.

Oceana hopes the report will lead to a decrease in "seafood fraud" and lead to more honest labeling and information about shrimp species and countries of origin, as well as whether the shrimp are farmed or wild.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Shrimp is the most commonly eaten seafood in America, so it's definitely worth knowing what you're eating. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has a handy "seafood watch" list of shrimp recommendations, so you can see which ones are more likely to be safe, and which are worse for the environment.

Continue reading for free

We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.

Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.

Meghan DeMaria

Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.