Shrimpers file federal lawsuit against Charleston restaurants for falsely advertising local seafood

Rocky Magwood, president of the S.C. Shrimper’s Association and a fourth-generation shrimper, said he’s spent his entire life fighting to keep the industry alive. He hopes the testing results, and the subsequent lawsuit, can change the tide for the dying industry.

“Now that we we have some proof … hopefully we can get something to come out of this, because it’s wrong,” Magwood said. “It’s been a long time coming.”

The Shrimpers Association is seeking relief in the form of damages, an amount to be determined at trial, as well as an injunction against the 40 restaurants. The injunction would prohibit restaurants from labeling imported or farm-raised shrimp as wild-caught or local, Howe said.

Restaurant community reacts

For many, the genetic testing results published on SeaD Consulting on June 10 were shocking. For others, the fact that only four of the sampled restaurants served wild-caught shrimp came as no surprise. 

Kerry Marhefka, a biologist and member of the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, said the testing results weren’t a shock to her and suspected if every restaurant in the tri-county area were to be tested, the ratio would be about the same.

“It’s a huge problem, and it’s not just shrimp,” Marhefka said.

There are reasons for serving imported seafood, Marhefka said, whether it’s access or cost of goods. But the issue in this case, she said, is that some restaurateurs are lying about what’s on their menus.

“Don’t try to pass off to the public that it’s local when it’s not,” Marhefka said. “The key is to be honest.”

She does have one concern about the study: By not naming the supposed offenders, the researchers have put the entire restaurant industry on the defensive to say they are not one of the 40, Marhefka said.

Allison Cagle, an owner of The Wreck of the Richard and Charlene restaurant off Shem Creek, said the seafood establishment tucked away on Haddrell Street in Mount Pleasant has “only ever served locally sourced shrimp right here from our South Carolina shrimpers.”