Bait and Switch: Study Shows Sushi Restaurants Substituting Tuna With Low-Grade Varieties or Even Endangered Species
jonathanturley
We previously followed a study of how leading restaurants were found to substitute cheap fish for salmon and other high-end fish without informing customers. Now, biologists have taken it upon themselves to test some of the sushi that they were served and discovered that, rather than tuna, it was often escolar — a fish that is often tied to diarrhea and other negative digestive reactions.
The study was published by PLOS One and was based on a team from Columbia University and the American Museum of Natural History. They ordered tuna from 31 sushi restaurants and found that more than half of those eateries misrepresented or could not identify the fish in the dishes. Worst yet, some were selling endangered southern bluefin tuna.
