The South Carolina Shrimpers Association has sued roughly 40 restaurants in the U.S. state, claiming they were falsely presenting the imported shrimp they sell as locally sourced.
“It’s illegal to say that a product is from South Carolina when it’s not, and similarly, federal law prohibits the mislabeling of the origins of seafood. It’s simply illegal at a state and federal level,” South Carolina Shrimpers Association Attorney Gedney Howe said, according to local news outlet WCSC-TV.
The association is asking a judge to issue an injunction prohibiting the named restaurants from claiming their imported shellfish is local seafood. The lawsuit claims the restaurants are in violation of both state and federal law. At the federal level, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warned restaurants last year that mislabeling foreign seafood is illegal. At the state level, the South Carolina Fair Trade Practices Act prohibits deceptive trade and commerce practices.
“Shrimp fraud is not a victimless crime,” South Carolina shrimper Bryan Jones said, according to WCSC-TV. “At the end of the day ...
