Two Firms Sentenced for Mislabeling Seafood in Violation of Lacey Act
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has announced that Mark Platt, of Shifco, Inc. of Florida, and Northern Fisheries, Ltd., of Rhode Island, were sentenced on March 25, 2011 based on their earlier pleas to conspiring to mislabel seafood, in violation of the Lacey Act.
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(The mislabeling of foods such as fish and shrimp is prohibited by the Lacey Act and the Food Drug and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act.)
Companies Falsely Repackaged and Labeled Salmon Fillets from China, Etc.
From January through February 2010, Platt, Shifco and Northern Fisheries engaged in a scheme through which Platt oversaw the false repackaging and labeling of 1,500 pounds of frozen chum Salmon fillets. The fillets, which were product of China, were re-labeled as being chum Salmon fillets of Russia. In addition, Platt and Shifco pleaded guilty to a scheme to re-label more than a million pounds of less marketable shrimp from Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia, as being from Panama, Ecuador, and Honduras. The shrimp had an estimated retail value of between $250,000 and $1,000,000.
Companies Sentenced to Serve Probation, Pay Special Assessments
Northern Fisheries was sentenced to two years in probation, a $3,500 fine and $400 special assessment. Shifco was sentenced to one year probation on each count of conviction, to run concurrently, and a $1,600 special assessment.
Platt was sentenced to three years' probation, six months in home confinement with electronic monitoring, and restrictions on working in the food and seafood industries. Further, Platt was required to complete 100 hours of community service, including writing an article describing his conduct in the case and assisting in teaching the seafood industry about regulations and requirements.