I love my sushi, my fav is the california roll and sashimi. But after reading this Twitter thread created and shared by Dr. Jennifer Mcdonald, a bio professor at Fanshawe College in Canada highlighting, the fish fraud is kind of putting me off sushi now. The thread uncovered some serious nastiness.
The professor asked her senior college class to visit various sushi places and bring back samples for the lab experiment she had in mind them for them. The thread goes as follows.
OH BOY OH BOY.
I just got the results back from my class' foray in sequencing fish samples. ARE YOU READY? They're a mind-bender. https://t.co/O7yBCHEQg4— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Josue sequenced some red snapper. I put money on that being tilapia and…I was right. Someone owes me $5.
His lab partner, Juanni, sequenced Atlantic Salmon. Comes back as Rainbow trout. Unsurprising. Not the same species AT ALL, but unsurprising.— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
David and Nicolas both sequenced what they thought was Steelhead trout (aka Rainbow trout). David's was smoked, Nic's not.
Nic's was rainbow trout.
David's was coho salmon.
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Reena sequenced what was labelled (on the box I bought at the grocery store, no less) Icelandic Cod (MSC-certified).
It was. Thank God.Sydney sequenced what was labelled (again, ON THE BOX purchased at the grocery store) Pacific Cod.
It was Atlantic Cod. (CRINGEEEE!!!!!!)— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Jade sequenced what the sushi restaurant (who shall remain nameless…it's probably not their fault) called red tuna.
IT WAS TILAPIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Moe sequenced one of the two samples (from different restaurants) labelled "white tuna". Often another name for albacore tuna.
It was yellowfin tuna. (NOT the same species!! A trade upwards)— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Evalyne sequenced the other sample of "white tuna". That was the one that I brought in, that I theoretically would have eaten if I actually liked and ate "white tuna" (I think it's gross).
It was escolar.THIS IS DANGEROUS. Can cause extreme gastrointestinal distress.
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Last but not least of successful sample runs, we had one that makes my skin crawl. It was a sequence that came back with a bunch of "unknown bases" (a bit of cleaning up will help immensely) but I worked with what I had and ran it through the database. Was *supposed* to be Salmon
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
This salmon was not from a restaurant, but was instead purchased from the seafood department of a local grocery store. Again, to remain nameless. This was purchased from a counter, someone reaches in and grabs the fish, puts it in a bag, sticks a sticker on it, pay by the pound.
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Of a gene approximately 650 base pairs long, I was hoping to get a workable sequence of at least 500 base pairs. This one only had 200 clean pairs before I go through the file to improve the sequence generated. So short compared to expected of "working material".
Ready?
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Body louse.
I think I might vomit in my mouth a little.
I hope this is a mistake. HOPE TO ANY GOD FROM ANY RELIGION that this is a mistake.I hope that this somehow becomes a fish sequence when I clean it up a bit. BUT BODY LOUSE.
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
This wasn't a piece of garbage from a market. This was from a "salmon fillet" that someone paid good money for, cut some off before they cooked it, put it in saran wrap & brought it in.
BODY LOUSE.
Think about how much there must be in that sample to override fish DNA!
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Anyway, I don't know if any of my students are nearly as enthralled as I am about the results of this experiment. I'M THRILLED.
16 students, 13 decent bands on the gel.
Of those, we had 9 with pretty decent sequences. THAT'S NOT BAD.
Of those 9, TWO WERE LABELLED CORRECTLY.— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
So if you "are what you eat" and you like seafood? You have no idea what you are because nothing is labelled properly. If you want to know what you're eating? Make sure it's from a certified sustainable fishery. They know what they're fishing, and know what they're doing.
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 5, 2019
Twitter users were shocked yet amazed at the experiment carried out by her students. Some of their responses.
My PhD was in barramundi genetics, and I got really good at spotting fish that was masquerading as barra when ordered at a restaurant. My own party trick. At least the PHD was useful for something…
— Carina Marshall (@carinarynn) April 6, 2019
Okay cool never eating sea food again pic.twitter.com/ifGnBulppO
— Alonso Delgado (@wildlife_bioGuy) April 5, 2019
Fraud is fraud. Doesn’t matter if it’s a close relative or not in my eyes. You call it one thing but it’s something else? That’s either an intentional lie at worst or unintentional misleading at best.
— Dr. Jen M (@AwesomeBioTA) April 6, 2019