WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) today questioned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on its seafood inspection standards following concerns that United States shrimpers are not given the opportunity to fairly compete in the global market.
Read highlights from Rep. Carter’s remarks below, as prepared for delivery, given during the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee’s hearing on “Evaluating FDA’s Human Foods and Tobacco Programs:”
“I have the honor and privilege of representing the entire coast of Georgia, over 100 miles of pristine coastline. Shrimping is a big industry in our state and shrimpers right now are really suffering.
“I want to talk about legislation that’s been introduced called the LESS Act that I think, [FDA Deputy Commissioner for Human Food James Jones], you’re familiar with. With all due respect to Representative Graves and Representative Castor, the co-sponsors of this bill, wild Georgia shrimp are the best in the world and that’s all there is to it. That’s not really up for debate.
“But if we were to quote the great philosopher Bubba Blue, ‘shrimp is the fruit of the sea.’ It’s extremely important to shrimpers in my district, in McIntosh and Glynn Counties, all throughout the coast.
“Unfortunately, Georgia shrimpers who are entirely based in my district face significant challenges to their ability to operate and compete in a global market for seafood. This is truly a shame as more and more Americans turn to our country’s number one seafood product…
“I want to bring awareness to this issue, and I want to ask Mr. Jones about the inspection of seafood entering the U.S.
“Mr. Jones, this bill, the LESS Act that's been introduced by Representative Graves and Representative Castor, it aims to ensure that shrimp in the United States are free from illegal antibiotics or products of illegal fishing operations. Could you speak to the extent of these issues and how Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points works to identify and mitigate food safety issues before they happen rather than relying on the finished product testing?...
“These guys are really struggling…I’m not trying to do away with competition, but at the same time we really need this industry to survive.
“We know there’s illegal fishing that’s going on, we know that they’re using illegal antibiotics that are not allowed here in this country, so all we’re asking for is a competitive playing field, all we’re asking for is to be able to compete.
"I hope the FDA understands that and understands the value of this, because if they’re dumping all these shrimp that are being raised in Indonesia or wherever it may be, then that’s really a problem, and that's really unfair.”
Watch Rep. Carter’s full line of questioning here.
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