WHEREAS, in May 1999, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued Import Bulletin 16B-95, "Tasteless Smoke and/or Carbon Monoxide" (Bulletin) in response to numerous complaints that the FDA had received on the importation and distribution of frozen tuna that has been processed with "tasteless smoke" (TS) or carbon monoxide (CO); and

WHEREAS, the Bulletin notes that this treatment may be applied to tuna processed in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Taiwan, and TS or CO is used to preserve, or fix, the natural red flesh color of tuna during frozen storage; and

WHEREAS, these agents may also be abused to enhance the color, making the product look of better grade or quality than it is, and complaints to the FDA were from manufacturers, distributors, and federal and state agencies; and

WHEREAS, the FDA stated that imported tuna treated with TS or CO should be labeled as processed foods that have been treated with CO or TS, not misrepresented as fresh frozen seafood on the label, and should be near normal in flesh color; and

WHEREAS, for example, at a minimum, the ingredients statement should include "tasteless smoke (preservative to promote color retention)," consistent with the labeling requirements of title 21 Code of Federal Regulations 101.22(j); and

WHEREAS, such treated products are misbranded when labeled as "Smoked Tuna," "Lightly Smoked Tuna," and "Cold Smoked Tuna" because these are the common or usual names for traditionally processed smoked-flavored fish, and tuna treated with either TS or CO that is not labeled to indicate it contains a preservative purports to be unprocessed, fresh, or fresh frozen tuna and is, therefore, misbranded; and

WHEREAS, these processed seafood require label declarations under title 21 Code of Federal Regulations part 101, including nutrition information; and

WHEREAS, in addition to being misbranded, color enhanced products may be deemed to be economically adulterated under Section 402(b)(4) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; and

WHEREAS, the FDA believes that the application of these preservatives might be abused and tuna treated with TS and/or CO must bear appropriate label declarations, or the product is misbranded; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-Second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that the Department of Health (DOH), with the assistance of the Department of Agriculture, is requested to review the importation to Hawaii of tuna treated with the preservatives TS and CO; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that DOH shall include in its review the effects of such preservatives on the health of consumers, and recommendations on how the State may regulate or ban the importation of tuna products treated with TS and CO; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that DOH is requested to not permit the processing of "tasteless smoke" tuna in the State unless processing is in DOH-approved facilities that use a sterile environment rather than burning fossil fuels which produce carcinogens; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that DOH is requested to enforce proper labeling of processed products where "cold smoked tuna", "smoked tuna" or "lightly smoked tuna" is misleading to the consumer; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the DOH submit a report of its review to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the Regular Session of 2004; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of the Resolution be transmitted to the Director of Health and the Chair of the Board of Agriculture.

Report Title:

Imported Tuna; Tasteless Smoke/Carbon Monoxide