Nearly 20 Tampa Bay area restaurants still falsely claiming shrimp served is from the Gulf: ‘Massive problem’

The Brief

  • SeaD Consulting re-tested shrimp at 22 Tampa Bay area restaurants this month after a previous investigation in January revealed only two out of 44 restaurants were serving authentic Gulf shrimp.
  • The latest round of DNA testing shows little progress: 80% of the restaurants tested are still serving imported, farm-raised shrimp despite claiming otherwise.
  • Local shrimpers and advocates said the deception continues to damage Florida’s struggling shrimping industry, which has seen a steep decline in vessels and revenue.

TAMPA, Fla. The Gulf shrimp on your plate might not actually be from the Gulf — and new testing suggests the problem isn’t going away.

What we know:

In January, SeaD Consulting, a food safety technology company, revealed that only two of 44 Tampa Bay area restaurants claiming to serve Gulf shrimp were actually doing so. This month, SeaD returned to re-test shrimp at 22 of those locations.

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