In a move the National Fisheries Institute's Better Seafood Bureau calls an "important step," the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is releasing a statement reminding the seafood industry that short weighting is a felony.
"Guidance to Industry," scheduled for public release on Monday, is a reminder of existing FDA policy issued in 1991, stating "the net weight of frozen seafood may not include the weight of the glazing (ice)."
The guidance also says the "Federal Food and Drug Cosmetic Act prohibits the adulteration of food by adding any substance (such as ice glaze) to increase its bulk or weight."
The memo explains that violators may be criminally prosecuted.
"Shining a regulatory light on this growing issue will help combat it," said Lisa Weddig, secretary of the Better Seafood Bureau. "With this kind of very public declaration by FDA, companies will find it hard to suggest they simply didn't know what they were doing was illegal in the U.S."
