NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) –– A new law by Senator Patrick Connick aims to give teeth to an existing law that requires restaurants to disclose where their seafood comes from.
Senate Bill 166, sponsored by Senators Connick, Allain, and Fesi, and now known as Act No. 148, is about “truth in advertising,” said Connick. He explained that some retailers import foreign seafood and then label their products in a way that could mislead consumers into believing the seafood was sourced locally.
The new law ensures products are not packaged or marketed with misleading labels, sets standards for state purchasing and sets clear rules for restaurants and stores that sell food. Fines for breaking the law range from $200 to $2,000 for restaurants and up to $50,000 for importers.
Connick said imported seafood is often cheaper, which forces local shrimpers to sell their catch for discounts that don’t cover their operating costs or push them out altogether.
An existing law passed in 2019 already requires restaurants to disclose where their seafood is from, but Connick said, “some of the restaurants would say, ‘domestic seafood used when available,’ and what does that mean?”
Other provisions in the law mandate that all state agencies, schools, and other public institutions exclusively use domestically produced meat, poultry, and seafood.
Gov. Jeff Landry signed the bill in March 2023, and it will become law on January 1, 2025.
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