Faced with possible ruin as a result of the oil spill, Louisiana blue crab producers are doing what 209 other fisheries around the world have done in recent years: seek to improve their standing by having their catch certified as environmentally sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council.
The London-based council, a nonprofit organization, announced on Thursday that the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board was seeking certification for the blue crab fishery. Word came as the marketing board trumpeted a finding by the federal Food and Drug Administration that gulf fish and shellfish were safe to eat as long as they were ‘‘harvested from areas unaffected by the precautionary closures of fishing waters.’’
Louisiana blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus, are sold exclusively for the domestic market, with the annual catch in recent years estimated at over 40 million pounds.
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