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SNOWE: LANGOSTINO IS NOT LOBSTER, AND SHOULD NOT BE MARKETED AS SUCH
Senator Snowe calls on FDA to preserve Maine Lobster Brand
October 4, 2006
WASHINGTON D.C. - U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) today released a September 25th letter sent to the Acting Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requesting a reversal of the FDA’s decision to allow the term “langostino lobster” to be used on restaurant menus. The FDA’s decision stems from a 2005 lawsuit filed against the California-based restaurant chain Rubio’s for selling a “Lobster Burrito” when in fact the burritos contained no lobster. As part of the out-of-court settlement reached between the parties, the FDA allowed the use of the term “langostino lobster” in dishes and menu items that include langostino but not lobster.
Andrew von Eschenbach, M.D.
Acting Commissioner
Food and Drug Administration
Dear Dr. Eschenbach:
Under a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision made as part of an out-of-court settlement with the California-based restaurant chain Rubio’s, the FDA has begun allowing langostino, a pelagic crab similar in appearance to a large shrimp, to be marketed on menus as “langostino lobster.” Other restaurant chains, including Long John Silver’s and Red Lobster, are now using this verbiage to describe their langostino dishes. Use of this term is misleading to consumers and unfairly affiliates langostino with actual lobster to the detriment of the lobster industry in Maine. I insist that the FDA rescind this decision and ensure that all such false advertising practices cease immediately.
At first glance, this shift in terminology may seem trivial. However, given the lobster’s critical role in Maine’s economy–lobster was a $290 million industry in the state in 2005–the impact of this decision extends far beyond simple semantics. The Maine Lobster Promotion Council has estimated that by blurring the lines of species identification and shifting the sales of lobster to sales of langostino, the FDA has cost Maine fishermen more than $44 million in lobster sales. Permitting this inferior product to be improperly marketed as “lobster” not only pollutes consumers’ appetite for real lobster, but it also exposes consumers who suffer from certain allergies to potentially life-threatening allergic reactions.
The state of Maine and its lobstermen have worked hard to develop the “Maine lobster” brand and create a stable market for this sustainable fishery. With this decision, the federal government is undermining those efforts. Langostino is not lobster, nor should it be marketed as such. The FDA will be remiss in its duties if it continues to allow restaurants or other entities to perpetuate this hoax at the expense of Maine’s lobstermen and America’s seafood consumers. Thank you for devoting you attention to this urgent matter; I look forward to working with you to correct this oversight as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Olympia J. Snowe
Chair, Subcommittee on Fisheries and Coast Guard
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