Foreign seafood could be banned at Louisiana schools

Students could be guaranteed domestic catch when seafood is on the school menu if a proposal before the Louisiana Legislature becomes law. The state House approved a bill Tuesday that would prohibit any public or private schools that receive state money from serving foreign seafood to students. 

House Bill 429, sponsored by Rep. Marcus Bryant, D-New Iberia, passed in a 94-7 vote with bipartisan support. It will next head to the Senate for consideration. 

An influx of cheap foreign catch, imported mostly from South America and Asia, has flooded Louisiana restaurants and retailers. Consumers are either oblivious to it or mistakenly believe they’re eating local fare because of deceptive labeling practices, according to the Louisiana Shrimp Association. 

There have been 2,600 violations of Louisiana’s imported shrimp law — and no fines

The imported seafood has decimated the state’s commercial fishing industry and its unique culture while also potentially introducing harmful contaminants into the food supply. 

Bryant’s bill would outlaw foreign seafood for any breakfasts, lunches and any other meals served as part of a school’s food program. It does not require any specific enforcement action but calls on the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) to establish any necessary rules and regulations to implement the measure.

The measure also picked up a floor amendment to apply the ban to the State Capitol’s cafeteria.

Bryant said school food suppliers would be subject to testing from the Louisiana Department of Health just as they currently are today. LDH already deploys health inspectors to test samples from the 58 permitted wholesale distributors of imported seafood across the state, though a lack of adequate funding lets many batches go untested.

Lawmakers have proposed bills to address that LDH funding issue along with other measures that target foreign seafood.