Illegally Caught Seafood Valued at Between $10-23-Billion Dollars a Year

A new study suggests that between 20 to 32-percent of all the wild caught seafood imported into the U.S. was caught illegally. The new study, published in the “Marine Policy” journal puts the value of the illegally caught seafood worldwide at between $10-23 billion dollars a year. The conservation organization Oceana is citing the study as a reason to improve regulations to address seafood fraud. They are calling for more inspections and stronger traceability requirements, including requiring fishermen to document where, when and how they got the fish. Oceana is supporting the “Safety and Fraud Enforcement for Seafood Act” that was introduced in the U.S. Senate by Senator Mark Begich from Alaska.