Political Quotes

“an onslaught of substandard foreign seafood, often subsidized by foreign governments or international financial institutions, is being dumped into our markets, devastating our domestic seafood industry. For example, after hearing testimony of some of my constituents, the U.S. International Trade Commission has determined that Ecuador, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam were illegally subsidizing and dumping shrimp, imposing antidumping and countervailing duties. This foreign seafood is often caught through illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing and employs brutal working conditions, including the use of child or forced labor. These foreign actors also don't abide by the same stringent food safety standards we have in our country, using banned antibiotics and other chemicals in their seafood. Just last year, there was a recall of foreign shrimp from Indonesia which was contaminated with cesium-137. The foreign shrimp was literally radioactive. Mr. Chair, imagine all the contaminated foreign seafood that slips into our food supply undetected. This has all combined to push down dock prices for our domestic shrimpers and fishermen. In some parts of the country, dock prices for shrimp fell to around $1 per pound in recent years. This coupled with the inflation we experienced under the previous administration and elevated fuel costs is causing the perfect storm.”