Seafood ChoiCeS

Seafood Choices: Balancing Benefits and Risks
http://www.nap.edu/catalog/11762.html
SEAFOOD ChOICES
is not systematically coordinated. This lack of coordination would not be
unexpected between public agencies and private organizations, or between
groups who may have different interpretations of the evidence about what
is a healthful eating pattern as well as different goals in giving advice.
However, even within the federal government, guidance to consumers has
not been systematically coordinated, either on a benefit-by-benefit or riskby-risk
basis, as illustrated by the differences between recommendations on
portion sizes and frequency of consumption (see Table 1-2 and Appendix
Table B-3).
Elements of the information environment which government agencies
can control include labels, other point-of-purchase information in the retail
environment, and restaurant and fast-food outlet menus.
Labels and Other Point-of-Purchase Information
Ingredient and Nutrition Labeling Ingredient labeling gives consumers content
information about packaged seafood products. In some cases, regulation
also restricts use of terms in identifying products. For example, only
albacore tuna can be labeled as “white tuna,” while “chunk light tuna” may
include several species of tuna.
Nutrition labeling in the form of the Nutrition Facts panel is mandatory
in the United States for packaged products, while the use of voluntary
nutrient content and health claims is also regulated. Fresh foods are exempt
from mandatory labeling. In 1992, the US Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) issued guidelines for a voluntary point-of-purchase nutrition information
program for fresh produce and raw fish. The guidelines are scheduled
to be revised in 2006 to make them more consistent with mandatory
nutrition labeling requirements (Personal communication, K. Carson, Food
and Drug Administration, April 1, 2006). To meet the guidelines, a retailer
must include the following nutrition information on the point-of-purchase
label for seafood that is among the 20 types most commonly eaten in the
US: seafood type; serving size; calories per serving; protein, carbohydrate,
total fat, cholesterol, and sodium content per serving; and percent of the US
Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) for iron, calcium, and vitamins
A and C per serving (FDA, 2004a). A serving is defined as 3 ounces or 85
grams cooked weight, without added fat or seasoning.
Qualified Health Claims Labeling While the standard Nutrition Facts format
informs consumers about several nutrition characteristics of seafood
products, it does not list omega-3 fatty acid content. In 2004, the FDA
announced the availability of a qualified health claim for reduced risk of
coronary heart disease on conventional foods that contain eicosapentaenoic
acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Qualified health claims on
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