Dear Lobster, I Hardly Knew Ye

That snapper you're eating probably isn't snapper

(NEWSER) - Mislabeling and diluting of foodstuffs has reached epidemic levels during the economic downturn and the FDA isn't doing enough to combat the problem, industry groups say. Experts believe at least 5% of the American food is supply is mislabeled and say regulators should step up efforts to stop instances of food fraud—like "100% pure honey" diluted with corn syrup or Mississippi saddlefish sold as as sturgeon caviar; one 2004 study found 77% of US-sold snapper was mislabeled. More»

(NEWSER) - You might suspect a sushi restaurant that doesn’t specify what sort of tuna you’re eating of trying to pawn off an inferior species. Not so. Researchers using novel DNA barcoding technology found that though nearly a third of tuna sold in 31 US restaurants was the prized—and endangered—bluefin. But just 8 of the 22 bluefin samples were accurately labeled. More»

Larry's plight stirs conscience of restaurant writer

(NEWSER) - Restaurant writer Ryan Sutton has dined on his share of lobsters, but the plight of one venerable crustacean has left him without an appetite. "Larry" is a 70-year-old lobster at New York's Oceana restaurant awaiting its fate as a $275 entree. Sutton admits he's never given much thought to the age of any of the cows or pigs he's feasted on, but 70 years? More»

Fiona is a 1-in-30-million genetic mutation

(NEWSER) - The one-in-30-million special at one Boston eatery isn’t on the menu. Caught off the Canadian coast, “Fiona” is believed to be a rare yellow lobster. The spotted 7-year-old (the coloring is actually closer to orange) is fed sushi-quality tuna and will eventually be sent to live at a museum, the owner tells the Boston Globe. Meantime, nobody’s eating her. “That would be like steaming a Rembrandt.” More»

Restaurant heeds PETA call to let old-timer return to the sea

(NEWSER) - A lobster almost as old as the Lincoln presidency will return to the ocean today after being freed by PETA, the Village Voice reports. The animal rights group persuaded a New York City seafood restaurant to release George, estimated to be 140 years old, and plans to free the old-timer in an area off the Maine cost where lobster trapping is forbidden. More»