Hook, line & stinker: The menus said snapper. But it wasn’t!
By Janet Rausa Fuller
Chicago Sun-Times
May 10, 2007
The sushi menus said red snapper, a fish prized for its flavor — and priced accordingly.
But a Sun-Times investigation found good reason to question whether diners are getting what’s promised.
The newspaper had DNA tests done on sushi described as red snapper or “Japanese red snapper” bought from 14 restaurants in the city and suburbs. Not a single one was really red snapper.
In most cases, the red-tinged flesh draped across the small mound of rice was tilapia — a cheap substitute. Nine of the 14 samples were tilapia. Four were red sea bream — nearly as pricey but still not red snapper.
“It’s misbranding, and it’s fraud,” said Spring Randolph of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which oversees labeling of seafood.
And there’s ample reason to believe diners around the country similarly are being taken in, the Sun-Times found:
– Some restaurant owners said that when they order red snapper, their suppliers send what the owners acknowledged, after checking, is actually tilapia. And most sushi fish in the United States comes from just a handful of suppliers.
– There’s little government oversight. Generally, that’s left to the FDA. Though the agency tries to investigate complaints, “We are not directly going out looking for species substitution,” Randolph said.
– Another FDA official said: “From the reports that we have received, there has been an increase in species substitution. It is a problem.”
Popularity leads to overfishing
Three years ago, prompted in part by concerns over mislabeled tilapia, the Japanese government called on retailers to accurately label fish.
In the United States, the Congressional Research Service — Congress’ research arm — issued a report last month citing a government survey that found 37 percent of fish examined by the National Marine Fisheries Service were mislabeled. A separate survey by the Fisheries Service found a whopping 80 percent of red snapper was mislabeled.
With red snapper, there’s incentive to cheat. It brings a good price. And the fish — found largely in the western Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico — has become so popular that it’s overfished, making it harder to find. As a result, it’s among the most commonly “substituted” fish, according to the FDA.
There are roughly 250 snapper species worldwide. Under federal law, just one can be sold as red snapper — the one known to scientists as Lutjanus campechanus.
Whole red snapper sells for $9 a pound, or more, retail. Tilapia sells for half that. But restaurant owners said they’re not trying to mislead customers.
At Chi Tung, 9560 S. Kedzie, owner Jinny Zhao reacted to being told the sushi she sells as red snapper is really tilapia by insisting that couldn’t be.
“Of course, it’s red snapper,” Zhao said. “If we order red snapper, we have to get red snapper.”
Hur San, owner of Sushi Mura, 3647 N. Southport, also seemed surprised.
“We just order [from] the fish company, and they deliver red snapper,” said San.
Then, at a reporter’s request, he examined the box. He saw these words: “Izumidai. Tilapia. From Taiwan.”
Izumidai is the Japanese term for tilapia.
At Bluefin Sushi Bar in Bucktown, Andrew Kim, the restaurant’s general manager, was surprised to find the same labeling.
“It’s tilapia,” Kim said. “I just saw that. I never thought to look at the description.”
At Todai, inside Schaumburg’s Woodfield mall, what was labeled on the buffet line as red snapper shouldn’t have been, a company spokesman said.
“This is an isolated incident,” said Paul Lee, a vice president of the California chain.
At Sushi Bento, 1512 N. Naper Blvd. in Naperville, manager Jamie Park said she was sure her restaurant served real red snapper. Told that the DNA testing showed it was tilapia, Park said, “Tilapia and red snapper look alike. They’re really close. They taste almost the same.”
At Tatsu, 1062 W. Taylor in the Little Italy neighborhood, the menu lists “tai, red snapper.” Tai actually refers to another fish — red sea bream.
But it really was tilapia, the tests showed. Told that, manager Ten Smith said he’d noticed that the label read tilapia but didn’t think much of it. He said, “The vendor recommends this [tilapia] fillet.”
Japanese Food Corporation, a major supplier with an office in Hanover Park, provides sushi fish to at least three restaurants in the Sun-Times survey. A spokeswoman said she couldn’t say whether the restaurants ask for red snapper, only that the company sells — and properly labels — tilapia as izumidai. “We don’t call it red snapper,” she said.
$2,000 fine
True World Foods, another major supplier, provides sushi fish to at least four of the restaurants surveyed. No one from the company, which has headquarters in New Jersey and an office in Elk Grove Village, returned calls for comment.
Zhao, the owner of Chi Tung, said her restaurant buys fish from True World. She said she called the company about the test results: “They said they gave us red snapper.”
At Renga Tei in Lincolnwood, the red snapper sushi turned out to be red sea bream. Chef and owner Hisao Yamada said he pays $11.50 to $11.95 a pound for sea bream. It’s a highly regarded fish. So why not call it sea bream? “Most American customers don’t know the name sea bream,” Yamada said.
Sushi Wabi, 842 W. Randolph, also offers red snapper that’s really red sea bream. Told that, owner Angela Hepler checked an invoice, which, confusingly, was marked “Tai (New Zealand Snapper/Bream).”
A day later, Hepler dropped the item, saying, “I don’t believe in overfishing and killing out a species or being sold something that I thought was something other than it really is.”
“It’s a concern that no restaurant seems to be offering the right fish,” said Bill McCaffrey, spokesman for Chicago’s Department of Consumer Services. “It suggests that this is an accepted industry practice.”
In Chicago, mislabeling fish is punishable by fines of up to $2,000. McCaffrey said he didn’t know of any restaurants being cited for fish fraud.
John Connelly, president of the National Fisheries Institute, the seafood industry’s main trade group, said substituting fish is like buying a cheap knockoff of a designer product.
“It’s fraud, and it should be stopped,” said Connelly. “If a person has a certain experience with a lower-end fish and they think it’s a higher-end fish, then their view of the higher-end fish may not be as positive.”
jfuller@suntimes.com
WHAT THE DNA TESTS FOUND
Bluefin, 1952 W. North
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: General manager said he didn’t know that what he orders is tilapia and, as a result, changed menu to say: “Izumidai (Tilapia).”
Chi Tung, 9560 S. Kedzie
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Owner said she trusts her supplier, insisting: “Of course, it’s red snapper. If we order red snapper, we have to get red snapper.”
House of Sushi & Noodles, 1610 W. Belmont
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Didn’t return calls.
Japonais, 600 W. Chicago
What we ordered: Japanese red snapper
DNA result: Red sea bream
Explanation: Owner said customers wouldn’t recognize “sea bream” on the menu.
Kamehachi, 1400 N. Wells
What we ordered: Japanese red snapper
DNA result: Red sea bream
Explanation: Owner said she has always referred to the fish as Japanese red snapper.
Kikuya, 1601 E. 55th
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Didn’t return calls.
Nohana, 3136 N. Broadway
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Questions were referred to the manager at sister restaurant Shiroi Hana, who said it was likely a mistranslation — and changed the menu to “Izumidai (Tilapia).”
Oysy, 315 Skokie Blvd., Northbrook
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Inconclusive
Explanation: Didn’t return calls.
Renga Tei, 3956 W. Touhy, Lincolnwood
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Red sea bream
Explanation: Chef/owner said customers recognize “red snapper” on a menu but wouldn’t know what they were getting if they saw “sea bream.”
Sushi Bento, 1512 N. Naper Blvd., Naperville
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Manager said the restaurant uses red snapper — and said tilapia and red snapper “taste almost the same.”
Sushi Mura, 3647 N. Southport
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Owner said the restaurant offers what its supplier sells as red snapper.
Sushi Wabi, 842 W. Randolph
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Owner pulled it off the menu, said she thought she’d been getting red snapper.
Tatsu, 1062 W. Taylor
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Manager said supplier recommends tilapia. Said owner switched to ordering whole red snapper based on Sun-Times findings.
Todai, Woodfield Mall, Schaumburg
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Tilapia
Explanation: Company spokesman blamed a translation mistake. Label on buffet line has been changed to “Izumidai (Tilapia).”
The Fish Guy Market, 4423 N. Elston (retailer)
What we ordered: Red snapper
DNA result: Red snapper
Explanation: Whole fish bought here was used as a control to show real red snapper would be recognized as such by DNA tests.
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