DNA barcoding reveals widespread seafood fraud in BC

[Red Bullets]

This is revealing. Wonder if this is as prevalent in Alberta? Some of the Alberta inland millennials might not know the difference between snapper and tilapia.

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/b...uver-1.4506831

[drhu22]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

This is revealing. Wonder if this is as prevalent in Alberta? Some of the Alberta inland millennials might not know the difference between snapper and tilapia.http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/b...uver-1.4506831

There was a Marketplace episode about this and other issues...
http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/episod...4/food-secrets

[Bushrat]

Widespread everywhere, so common it is the norm.

[TylerThomson]

Originally Posted by Red Bullets

This is revealing. Wonder if this is as prevalent in Alberta? Some of the Alberta inland millennials might not know the difference between snapper and tilapia.

http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/b...uver-1.4506831

Why the jab at millennials? Could you tell the difference because the article I read says that 100 percent of their samples of red snapper were not red snapper and this is in Vancouver. From that it's easy to deduce that many if not close to everybody is fooled.

This has no effect on me unless pike in the lake start dressing up like walleye lol.

[WillyOneStyle]

Originally Posted by TylerThomson

Why the jab at millennials? Could you tell the difference because the article I read says that 100 percent of their samples of red snapper were not red snapper and this is in Vancouver. From that it's easy to deduce that many if not close to everybody is fooled.

This has no effect on me unless pike in the lake start dressing up like walleye lol.

Now I could be mistaking, but, I don't think the article meant that 100% of the red snapper on the market is mislabeled. I think it meant that some red snapper samples were 100% mislabeled, meaning wrong species. Other species, like salmon, might be only partially mislabeled; for instance a pink salmon being labeled as chum salmon or a farmed salmon labeled as wild.

I am among the oldest Millennials. You'd be hard pressed to get me to believe a little tilapia fillet was a red snapper, but I might be fooled with others, cod and haddock for example. The researcher is right about the safe way to get what you want is to buy fish with the skin on. A lot of times the skin is the best part.

[Erik]

Red snapper sold in BC and Alberta (and probably elsewhere) is actually Yelloweye Rock fish. It has been for as long as I can remember and probably will be til the end of time. There is no actual Red snapper being sold and nobody is being fooled by the mislabeling as it has consistently been so for decades.

If they are now dressing up Tilapia as Red Snapper, then this would be a new turn of events and that would be somewhat deceptive. However, the Tilapia and Yelloweye are easily distinguished, and have considerably different tastes and textures. I'd be highly surprised if they didn't get called out on it by regular customers (ie no DNA testing needed). That said, I'd be interested to hear other examples of fish fraud and see some light shed on it.

[Bushrat]

Originally Posted by Erik

That said, I'd be interested to hear other examples of fish fraud and see some light shed on it.

Google 'Fish Market Fraud' there are endless pages of examples, it is so common everywhere. CBC's Market Place and many other TV expose' shows have been done about it.

[MyAlberta]

The further along the distribution chain, the higher the occurence.

[EZM]

As far as I recall - There are exactly ZERO red snappers caught off the coast of the north west pacific. In fact their range is in the gulf of Mexico and in warm waters of the Atlantic and this fish is not resident to the Pacific at all.

I think The reason the guy said 100% of the snappers were mislabelled (and were actually rock fish) is because a yellow eye (which has red skin) is commonly, and incorrectly locally referred to as red snapper - when, simply stated, the "common/local name" is incorrect from a scientific perspective.

In the state of California, the yellow eye rockfish is legally sold as red snapper.

They are yellow eye rock fish.

So I think, if you read between the lines, and use common sense - YES there is lot's of fish fraud - but there are also as many (if not more) fish sold under "common" names.

Shark meat - as one example is sold under many names like greyfish, flake, monkfish, etc...

[Bigbuzz]

I know a little about the fish biz and I have seen all kinds of thing marketed as "red snapper". Here on the coast yellow eye rockfish are a premium quality white fleshed fish that have been near fished to death and are becoming more difficult to get. There are restrictions in many areas trying to protect them. The marketing of tilapia, hake, Pollock etc has been a game for long time, call it red snapper, halibut and so on, how money is made.

[fordtruckin]

YUM YUM! Another reason I like to only eat fish I've caught or got at a fish market like you find along the coast.