After Mississippi Gulf Coast staple restaurant Mary Mahoney’s Old French House came under fire for fraudulent branding of seafood, a new third-party investigation has found that mislabeling imported seafood is more rule than the exception for the region’s celebrated food scene.
SeaD Consulting, a firm that specializes in genetic testing to monitor mislabeling and substitution fraud in the seafood industry, conducted a comprehensive investigation into the potential misrepresentation of shrimp served across coastal Mississippi.
The findings uncovered a shocking revelation that the vast majority of area restaurants advertising “fresh, local seafood” caught in the Gulf of Mexico are in reality serving customers cheap, imported alternatives. Key findings from the investigation include:
- 39% of Gulf White Shrimp served was not local: Of 44 restaurants sampled and genetically tested, 17 establishments served imported shrimp while marketing it as local Gulf White Shrimp.
- 92% of Royal Red Shrimp served was not local: 22 of 24 restaurants that had Royal Red Shrimp listed on their menu admitted to serving inferior, lower-value Argentinian shrimp instead of the FDA-name-protected Gulf Royal Red Shrimp that was being advertised.
- 82% of the restaurants were defrauding consumers about what they were buying. Cross-referencing the Royal Red data with the local caught Gulf White Shrimp data determined that only 8 restaurants were honestly serving what they were advertising.
- Significant financial impact on consumers: The investigation revealed that fraudulent shrimp dishes were often priced as high as $24.95 per plate, meaning consumers are paying top dollar for inauthentic products. On average, diners spent $16.72 per fraudulent dish, with additional costs for gratuities, transportation, and parking further inflating the total.
“Consumers come to the coast expecting the finest, freshest Gulf seafood, but what they’re being served often falls far short of that,” COO of SeaD Consulting Erin Williams said in a press release. “This isn’t just about mislabeling; it’s about eroding consumer trust, undercutting local business, and threatening the livelihood of hardworking Gulf shrimpers.”
While consumers experience higher prices for lesser products under the guise of genuine fare, the investigation’s findings also shine a grim spotlight on a local seafood industry that is struggling to keep up with foreign competition.
Between 2020 and 2022, the domestic shrimp industry’s share of total U.S. consumption dropped from 7.4% to just 5.9% in 2022.
SeaD elected not to reveal which of the 36 restaurants were allegedly defrauding customers, but did release the names of the eateries that were found to be serving 100% genuine Gulf shrimp as advertised:
- Anthony’s Under the Oaks – 1217 Washington Ave, Ocean Springs
- Bayview Café – 850 Bayview Ave, Biloxi
- Da Best Wings – 157 Hardy Court Shopping Ctr., Gulfport
- Parrain’s Jambalaya Kitchen – 179 Reynoir St, Biloxi
- Patio 44-124 Main St, Biloxi
- Port City Café- 2561 Pass Rd Ste A, Biloxi
- Rouse’s Market 88 – 2384 Pass Rd, Biloxi
- Phoenicia Gourmet Restaurant – 1223 Government St, Ocean Springs, MS
“We owe it to our communities, our fishermen, and our consumers to take action now,” Williams said. “Transparency and accountability are essential to safeguarding the integrity of our seafood industry and ensuring the public can trust the products they’re paying for.”
