Investigation uncovers shrimp fraud in Louisiana ahead of Super Bowl LIX

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The Super Bowl brings an influx of visitors Louisiana, and many will be indulging in the state’s world-famous local seafood, from po’ boys to gumbo. However, a recent study conducted by SEAD Consulting has uncovered that some restaurants have “dropped the ball” when claiming to serve authentic Gulf shrimp and being honest with their customers.

 

Of the 24 randomly selected seafood restaurants tested in New Orleans that explicitly advertised their shrimp as “Gulf” or “authentic”, three were found to be mislabeling their product and serving farm-raised imports instead. While this 13% fraud rate is the lowest recorded to date in SEAD Consulting’s multi-state study, the nature of the deception in New Orleans is particularly striking, and highlights the need for increased enforcement.

 

“While New Orleans has the lowest shrimp fraud rate we’ve seen in our multi-state study so far, the deception we did uncover is particularly blatant,” said Erin Williams, COO of SEAD Consulting. “These restaurants aren’t just using suggestive imagery and
wording—they are explicitly marketing their shrimp as ‘Gulf’ or ‘authentic’ while serving something else. A 13% fraud rate means that if you order eight shrimp dishes advertised as local, chances are one of them isn’t what it claims to be.”


 

Louisiana’s new labeling law (Act 372) aims to prevent precisely this type of deception, and through those legislative efforts, the investigative work of SEAD, media awareness and public outcry, fraud rates are expected to stay low in the area, especially if fines are
given to the offending restaurants. Officials and regulators now have clear evidence that restaurants are still misleading customers despite requiring clear labeling of country of origin for shrimp and other seafood items on menus and signs.

 

The Louisiana Shrimp Task Force, which commissioned SEAD Consulting to conduct the study across multiple Louisiana cities, is committed to eliminating shrimp fraud entirely. “Customers deserve to know exactly what they’re eating, and our shrimping communities must be able to trust that restaurants using local shrimp imagery and language are genuinely selling that product”, said Andrew Blanchard, VP of The Louisiana Task Force.

 

In the interest of consumer transparency, below is a listing of the 21 restaurants that SEAD Consulting verified as truthfully serving Gulf-caught shrimp as advertised:

  • Acme Oyster House – 724 Iberville St, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • Blue Crab Restaurant & Oyster Bar – 7900 Lakeshore Dr, New Orleans, LA 70124
  • Boil Seafood House – 3340 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115
  • Bourbon House – 144 Bourbon St, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • Café Beignet – 600 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • Creole House Restaurant & Oyster Bar – 509 Canal St, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • Deanie’s Seafood – 841 Iberville St, New Orleans, LA 70112
  • Estrella – 237 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • Felix’s Restaurant & Oyster Bar – 7400 Lakeshore Dr, New Orleans, LA 70124
  • High Hat Café – 4500 Freret St, New Orleans, LA 70115
  • Katie’s Restaurant & Bar – 3701 Iberville St, New Orleans, LA 70119
  • Lakeview Harbor – 8550 Pontchartrain Blvd, New Orleans, LA 70124
  • Luke – 333 St Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • Melba’s PoBoys – 1525 Elysian Fields Ave, New Orleans, LA 70117
  • Mr. Ed’s PoBoy Shop – 620 Iberville St, New Orleans, LA 70130
  • New Orleans Hamburgers & Seafood Co – 817 Veterans Memorial Blvd, Metairie, LA 70005
  • Parkway Bakery & Tavern – 538 Hagan Ave, New Orleans, LA 70119
  • Pat O’Brien’s – 718 St Peter, New Orleans, LA 70116
  • Pigeon & Whale – 4525 Freret St Ste 107, New Orleans, LA 70115
  • Porgy’s Seafood Market – 236 N Carrollton Ave, New Orleans, LA 70119
  • The Original Cajun Seafood – 1479 N. Claiborne Ave. New Orleans, La 70116

 

Dana Honn, Founder of Louisiana Shrimp Festival/Shrimp Aid and owner of Nikkei Izakaya, recommends that diners insist on local seafood choices. If a restaurant claims to serve Gulf shrimp, patrons should feel empowered to ask for verification and inspect the packaging, carefully checking for written country of origin information on the box—even if the packaging features the renowned Fleur De Lis symbol of Louisiana.

 

As visitors flock to New Orleans for the Super Bowl, they deserve to enjoy the city’s legendary cuisine without the risk of being misled. SEAD Consulting remains committed to protecting both consumers and the hardworking Gulf shrimp industry from seafood fraud.


 

About The Louisiana Shrimp Task Force – The Louisiana Shrimp Task Force is responsible for studying and monitoring the shrimp industry and making recommendations to The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, and other state agencies on improving production and the economic sustainability of the industry.

 

About SEAD Consulting – SEAD (Seafood Development) Consulting works with diverse stakeholders — seafood producers, academia, governmental agencies, and environmental organizations — to foster innovation and sustainability throughout the sector, bridging commercial fishery science with testing and processing technologies to combat seafood mislabeling and substitution fraud. They currently hold the patent, in partnership with Florida State University, for portable rapid ID high accuracy genetic test RIGHTTest™, being used in a multi-state study to determine shrimp species being served at seafood restaurants. For more information, click here. Consumers are also encouraged to contact SeaD Consulting to report suspected fraud in their area.