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White House eating, serving, promoting Gulf seafood
The White House is putting its menu where its mouth is.
President Obama and administration officials have said numerous times since the BP oil spill that seafood from the Gulf of Mexico is safe and good to eat.
Now, White House chef Cris Comerford says on the executive mansion's blog that she's ordered 2,000 pounds of Gulf shrimp and crab to serve during the holiday season.
"I'm excited to use the power of food once again to honor not only the Gulf, but some very special guests," Comerford wrote.
Meanwhile, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, who also is the coordinator of the administration's Gulf spill response, is pushing the Pentagon to buy as much Gulf seafood as possible to boost the industry and set an example, NOLA.com reports.
"He expressed what we wanted to hear: He is in favor of the federal government buying seafood from the Gulf," Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board, told NOLA.com.
Smith said he would like to see all public entities use Gulf seafood, "whether it's the military or prison systems or school systems."
BP is giving Louisiana $48 million for seafood safety and promotion programs as part of a larger restoration effort, according to NOLA.com.
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From the storyboard and TV screen to the real thing....
Blinky's gonna get served up for real!
This sounds a little like they were getting the shrimp from foreign sources prior to this decision. Otherwise, wouldn't they just be taking revenue away from our southeastern fisheries?
Hey, order some for me too! If our government can pay for shrimp and crab, our gov't. cbn afford to vote a COLA for those of us that are drowning in the economy pool!
Very happy to hear that the seafood industry is back on its feet. God bless America!
They may be serving seafood from the Gulf, but I bet they are very selective about which part of the gulf it came from!
......That is until we come down with "Gulf Oil Syndrome."
Too bad most restaurants I've worked in are charging Gulf of Mexico prices, but serving you cheap farm raised Vietnamese shrimp. All that "Maine" lobster tail is really from Chile or New Zealand.
I guess my point would be that we outsource too much. I've never worked in a place that bought Gulf seafood. It's definitely a higher quality, but also costs a lot.
Does'nt it take diesel fuel (a by-product of crude oil), in order to transporrt 1 ton of shrimp, from Louisiana to Washington D.C.? If drilling is banned, how are you going to get your shrimp next year?
I've never been to Massachusates, but I think they like crab legs, cold beer, and grilled corn on the cob. No, I can't spell Massachusates correctly.
Gulf seafood is popular. It requires low to no cooking oil.
Not buying it....bp seafood...only a fool would eat seafood from the gulf. Whitehouse sponsored suicide seafood dinner should be rsvp for bp officials only!
Oh good. They cleaned up the Gulf. I'm glad they got that done so we can eat gulf seafood safely. And look how fast they cleaned it up! I'm thinking they added something to the toxic sludge running through the Missippi River into the Gulf that makes oil disappear.
Personally, I don't know anyone from Massachusates, I live South of San Antonio, TX. Yea, people from Massachsates are not into cook outs and Corona beer. They like seafood and corn on the cob and maybe some fancy wine or something. JFK, only one of the best presidents we have ever had, was from there.
I think thats great to hear they should ephasize that more , people are still struggling over there ! checkout my health and fitness blog http://razzlea.blogspot.com/
We are working hard to test our seafood and properly ensure its safety. It is time for Louisiana businesses to restore our seafood industry, our restaurants and the image of our state. Gulf seafood still has a perception problem but the reality is Gulf Seafood is safe and plentiful.
The FDA operates a mandatory safety program for all seafood products under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and Public Health Service Act. This program includes research, inspection, compliance, enforcement, outreach and the development of regulations and industry guidance for seafood.
Current scientific data from this sophisticated testing indicate Gulf Seafood is safe to eat.
Three departments in the State of Louisiana – the Departments of Environmental Quality, the Department of Health and Hospitals, and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries participate in seafood safety testing programs.
The FDA is working closely with NOAA put in place strong safety criteria to protect vulnerable populations, including children, pregnant women, and subsistence fishing communities.
Matthew Berman
Louisiana Seafood Board
@LASeafoodBoard
http://louisianaseafood.com/