One of the hottest trends to hit menus in recent months - the seafood slider - piqued SeafoodSource readers' curiosity. "Seafood sliders a hot trend," reported by SeafoodSource contributor Christine Blank, was this week's most-read story. Here's a look at what SeafoodSource readers checked out this week:
1) Small size, big trend: Seafood sliders - including crab cakes, salmon burgers and mahimahi burgers - are one of the hottest menu trends right now, as smaller-portion, lower-price items swell in popularity. Even supermarkets and convenience stores are jumping on the seafood-slider bandwagon. Seafood America of Warminster, Pa., and Icelandic USA of Newport News, Va., are among the companies marketing seafood sliders.
2) Cheaters beware: Economic integrity was a hot topic at last week's International Boston Seafood Show. Just three days after the show, the Government Accountability Office confirmed what everyone in the U.S. seafood trade has known for eons - economic integrity isn't a U.S. Food and Drug Administration priority and takes a backseat to food safety. The GAO report and the seafood industry's efforts to clamp down on economic fraud garnered a lot of interest from the mainstream media this week and was the subject of a SeafoodSource commentary.
3) Sign of the times: Maine is known for its bounty of clams, mussels and oysters. But the state's shellfish-monitoring program lacks the funding and personnel needed to comply with the FDA's water-quality testing requirement. If it can't secure additional funding, Maine may be forced to halt shellfish inspection for most of the coastline, leaving only 300 to 400 miles open for the existing five employees to monitor.
4) China's resilience: Despite the global economic slump, China watched its frozen finfish and shrimp exports in January increase 2.7 percent, to USD 337.6 million (EUR 248.4 million), compared to January 2008. The country also reported this week that it represents just over two-thirds of global seafood output at more than 34 million metric tons annually.
5) The numbers are in: Alaska's salmon catch is projected to reach 174.8 million fish this year, up 28.7 million fish from 2008's 146.1-million-fish haul, the 16th largest since 1960. Pink salmon landings are forecasted to top 113 million fish, which would be up from 84 million fish last year.
