April 27, 2007

Alabama bans catfish from China

Alabama has banned catfish from China after finding traces of a prohibited antibiotic in a shipment, the state agriculture department said.

Alabama is the second largest producer of catfish in the US.

Fourteen of the 20 Chinese catfish tested contained the antibiotic, state agriculture commissioner Ron Sparks said in a statement.

The state is conducting tests on more fish similar to catfish from China, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, Sparks said.

Alabama farmers sold 90.9 million pounds of catfish last year, valued at US$99 million, according to USDA. Top producer Mississippi's produced US$262.5 million worth of catfish

The US catfish industry has faced growing competition from Asian producers in recent years. Imports in 2006 more than doubled to 75 million pounds from 30.1 million pounds in 2005, according to the USDA.