The state of Florida has a Web site that will help consumers determine whether the grouper they buy is the real deal –or a substitution.
Grouper is one of Florida’s prized seafood species, and Florida provides more than 90% of the nation’s supply of the fish.
The Bureau of Seafood and Aquaculture Marketing has developed a Web site that provides tips on purchasing grouper. To protect themselves against product mislabeling, consumers can visit
The site comes in the wake of a series of cases where merchants mistakenly or purposely sold cheaper substitutes to customers without their knowledge. Because of its limited supply and relatively high price, Florida grouper has been targeted by unscrupulous merchants who want to profit from its popularity. There have been instances where restaurants, wholesalers and retailers have substituted a lesser-value fish and mislabeled it as grouper.
State agencies have been investigating these illegal practices and fining establishments that misrepresent seafood species. Some restaurants indicate the fish was mislabeled with they received it from wholesalers.
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