New rules directing the U.S. Department of Agriculture to inspect catfishlike imports from Asia are being challenged in Congress, leaving Arkansas catfish farmers and lobbyists frustrated with the long-fought policy battle.
Joey Lowery, a catfish farmer for about 30 years and former president of industry group Catfish Farmers of America, said he has helped lobby for USDA inspections for years. He owns a 500-acre catfish farm in northeast Arkansas near Newport.
"It's unbelievable to me," he said. "Anyone going against [inspections] doesn't have their priorities right."
Asian imports of a fish similar to catfish hit the domestic catfish industry hard about 15 years ago. For years, farmers and lobbyists have been trying to protect their market share by pushing the Food and Safety Inspection Service, the inspection arm of the USDA, to take a closer look at imported fish. Domestic farmers say the imported fish is of lower quality and has potential health risks, putting their livelihoods in peril.
When Lowery first started farming catfish, he said he could count on his business to grow about 5 percent every year. Then, in 2002, a similar fish from Asia entered the U.S. market at prices the domestic industry couldn't match. Only about half of the catfish farmers in the state at that time remain in business, Lowery said. The number of acres devoted to catfish farming in the U.S. has fallen nearly 40 percent since 2008, according to USDA data.
Catfish remains the top aquaculture product in Arkansas, and the state is third in the nation in catfish production.
"Catfish is really sensitive to a food scare," Lowery said. "Things have got to go pretty smooth in order to do this."
Previously, the Food and Drug Administration conducted inspections of imported fish, but the nonprofit Catfish Institute says the FDA only tested about two-tenths of a percent of fish in a laboratory. The FDA mostly inspects by sight, while the USDA inspects facilities and samples imports.
Measures to allow stricter inspections were introduced in the 2008 farm bill, but they were not finalized until November. The final rules for inspection were published at the beginning of December, and the USDA started inspections in March.
USDA inspectors have already flagged shipments containing industrial dyes banned in the U.S. as carcinogens. Last week, U.S. officials said a Chinese ship bound for a California port turned around rather than face inspection.
"The domestic industry would welcome the competition," said Chad Causey, founder of Causey Law Firm in Little Rock. U.S. fish farmers "have a lot of pride with the safety and purity of their product. What they can't compete against is a major food safety scare."
Shortly after the new inspection rules were phased in, Sen. John McCain, a Republican from Arizona, asked Congress to review the regulations and to consider ending them.
Causey, who has lobbied for the USDA inspections, said the Senate approved McCain's resolution, but the House of Representatives has yet to take up the issue.
Causey said Arkansas' senators voted against ending the inspections, and congressmen from other catfish-producing states have argued for continued inspections.
"The U.S. had become a dumping ground for subpar seafood," he said.
He said between 40 and 50 percent of fish served as catfish in restaurants is mislabeled.
"It's very hard today to know what you are consuming," Causey said. "If the U.S. consumer became concerned, they aren't going to discriminate. As far as they can tell, catfish is catfish."
Opponents of the USDA inspections say the program is too expensive, and that it creates an unnecessary trade barrier with Vietnam and other Asian nations. Those lobbying for inspections, such as Causey, say the USDA already inspects poultry, pork and beef imports and that the cost is only a fraction of what opponents claim.
"This is nothing new," Causey said. "They should have no problems if the product is safe."
Business on 06/08/2016