Margaret Spring - seafood imports amendment

From Margaret Spring, Democratic Senior Counsel - Oceans, Atmosphere and Fisheries Subcommittee Senate Commerce Committee:

Senator Hollings's amendment to the Trade Promotion Authority bill (HR 3009, the Andean Trade Act) now on the floor of the Senate was just this moment finally cleared for inclusion in the bill. Senate passage will be in the next day or so. Sen. Hollings was joined by Senators Breaux and Lott on the amendment, which would strengthen the ability of FDA to stop imports of seafood that contain compounds banned from use in the U.S.

There will be some technical changes, but I have outlined below generally what the amendment would do. We may still have to work some additional technical issues out with FDA in the House-Senate conference.

The amendment amends the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act directing FDA to refuse admission to the US of imported seafood from a country or exporter if the Secretary finds reliable and applicable evidence that shipments of seafood imported from that country or exporter are likely to contain one or more compounds banned in the US under 21 CFR 530.41(a).

In addition to direct testing by FDA or an an FDA-approved entity (this can include a state), the FDA can also rely on the following kind of evidence: (1) findings from an inspection team that goes overseas to look for this kind of evidence; or (2) detection by other importing countries of these compounds in seafood imports that originate from a particular country.

Once the FDA issues an order to refuse entry, shipments can only come into the US if they are proven not to contain any of these compounds. This testing can be done either by FDA or by the importer/exporter. The order prohibiting further seafood imports from that country is not lifted until either (1) an inspection team sent by FDA has determined the prohibited drug at issue is no longer sold
for use, or being used, in food-producing animals in that country; or (2) for 1 year shipments to the US from that country or exporter have been found not to contain the drug.

We will try to send you a copy of the final version of the amendment as soon as we get it.

I also have attached a fact sheet we used to convince folks up here it was the right thing to do!

Notice the language is not only about "shrimp" - it covers all seafood. This means that if drugs are detected in one sort of seafood (e.g., crawfish), it can be used to prevent imports of other seafood (e.g., shrimp).

Also, as you may be speaking to the press, we have been trying not to scare anyone about shrimp or other seafood - We want to send a strong positive message about U.S. shrimp (vs. imports), both to avoid a stigma on all shrimp and seafood, and to promote US shrimp.

Look forward to talking with you soon, and thanks for all your help and information!!

- Margaret

Margaret Spring
Democratic Senior Counsel
Oceans, Atmosphere and Fisheries Subcommittee
Senate Commerce Committee
(202) 224-4912 (phone)
(202)228-2339 (fax)

Contaminated Seafood Risks Americans’ Health

Banned in EU; Restricted in Canada. The European Union has banned — and Canada has severely restricted — imports of shrimp from China and other countries due to contamination by a dangerous toxin: Chloramphenicol. But food contaminated with this dangerous drug is coming into the United States with virtually no inspection at all.

Chloramphenicol Can Be Fatal. Chloramphenicol is a potent antibiotic used in aquaculture ponds in less-developed countries. Chloramphenicol can cause severe toxic effects in humans — especially hypo-aplastic anemia, in which bone marrow stops producing red blood cells. The condition is usually irreversible and fatal. The drug is administered to humans only in life-threatening situations when less toxic drugs are not effective.

Chloramphenicol Used in China, Thailand, Vietnam. Chloramphenicol is used by seafood exporters in Thailand and Vietnam, the top two exporters of shrimp to the United States. The drug is also used in China, the fifth largest exporter of shrimp to the United States.

Americans Eat 3 Pounds of Shrimp Each Year. The United States imports most of the shrimp it consumes: 400,000 metric tons each year. From Thailand alone, the U.S. imported 140,000 metric tons of shrimp. The percentage of imported shrimp is rising each year.

FDA Inspections Rare. The FDA inspects only 2 percent of all seafood imports into the United States. The FDA’s system for detecting Chloramphenicol is inferior to the testing used by the EU and Canada, which has found the drug in shrimp exported from the Far East. The testing protocol used in Europe and Canada can detect such drugs to 0.3 parts per billion (ppb), while FDA uses a technique that only measures to 3 ppb. The FDA has a "zero-tolerance" policy for unapproved drugs — including Chloramphenicol — in both domestic and imported fish and seafood. If the drug is detected in an import shipment, the FDA prohibits entry.

Independent Testing Finds Toxin. While the FDA has not found Chloramphenicol in imported shrimp due to lax inspection and inferior testing systems, independent state testing has found these drugs in U.S. food imports. The State of Louisiana detected chloramphenicol at a level of over 2 ppb in Chinese crawfish.

Amendment Would Expand Evidence FDA Can Rely On. The EU has banned imports of honey, shrimp, rabbit meat, poultry, and pet food from countries where use of Chloramphenicol has been found. Canada now "holds and tests" every shipment of shrimp from China and Vietnam. The proposed amendment would 1) allow testing by state and other FDA approved entities - not just by FDA; and 2) allow US to hold and test suspected contaminated shipments.

Keep Contaminated Seafood From Heading to U.S. With the EU and Canada taking action to block imports of contaminated shrimp, exporters will attempt to send even more contaminated product to the United States. Therefore, we must protect America’s public health by stepping up our inspection of imported seafood.