Today's Huffington Post reports a New Zealand man in a 20-foot tin boat caught a big fish. A really big fish, in fact: His bluefin tuna weighed in at nearly 150 pounds heavier than the one that sold for $736,000, the most expensive fish ever caught.
Local fisherman Al Rodriguez says fish this big are a rarity in local waters. Having moved from Long Island to South Florida to fish year-round, he says he's not snagging fish as big as those he caught several years ago.
Rodriguez is a character in this week's review in which I also address the rising price of local fish and how chefs deal with it (by buying out of state, among other things).
Next week, visit back for a tour a boutique
vendor, Florida's Finest. You'll also learn more about the mislabeling of fish and why it has gotten worse since 2001: not just in Florida, but everywhere.
The Boston Globe did a five month investigation, in which they sent 187 fish for DNA testing and found that 48 percent of it was mislabeled by restaurants, grocery stores, and seafood markets. Of the 23 tuna samples sent, every single one was some other fish-- usually escolar.
In "Fishy Business: Do You Know What You Are Really Eating?" non profit Oceana asserts that only 2% of imported seafood is inspected while up to 70% of it is mislabeled. That's quite an assertion, considering 84% of the seafood we consume is imported.
As for that majestic bluefin? Since the boat wasn't registered, ironically he couldn't sell the fish. Instead, he's having it mounted.
See the rest of the slideshow here.
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