Bipartisan Bill Would Give FDA Authority to Destroy Contaminated Food Imports
In a 43–0 vote on May 21, 2026, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce advanced the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act, which would authorize the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to destroy imported foods that have been refused entry into the country upon failing safety inspection. The bill is intended to prevent importers from “port shopping,” or attempting reentry of contaminated or otherwise unsafe goods into the market via different ports.
At present, FDA has the jurisdiction to destroy any imported medical devices and medications that pose a health risk to the public. However, this authority does not extend to imported food products that fail to meet U.S. health and safety standards—a gap that the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act aims to close.
With support from the seafood industry, the bipartisan bill was introduced by Representative Clay Higgins (R-Louisiana) and Senator Troy Carter Sr. (D-Louisiana) with the particular intent of stopping contaminated shrimp and seafood products from entering the U.S. market. The bill is backed by a coalition of 16 seafood industry groups led by the Southern Shrimp Alliance, as well as the Safe Food Coalition.
“This bill protects consumers from potential health risks and upholds the integrity of our food supply chain, while supporting fishermen and seafood processors,” remarked Rep. Carter.
A Focus on Imported Shrimp Safety
Because 94 percent of all seafood in the U.S. is imported, and shrimp is the most consumed seafood in the U.S., the safety of imported shrimp has been a focus of legislators and regulators in recent years. For example, Congress previously introduced a bill to set stricter federal inspection requirements for shrimp entering the U.S., and has mandated FDA to establish regulatory partnership arrangements with the largest shrimp-exporting countries, like Ecuador.
A high-profile food safety incident occurred in 2025 when FDA discovered radioactive isotope Cesium-137 in shipments of shrimp from Indonesia, which were distributed nationwide under various brand names at large retailers, including Walmart.
About the Destruction of Hazardous Imports Act, John Williams, Executive Director of the Southern Shrimp Alliance, said, “Imported shrimp and seafood products that are potentially dangerous for consumers need to be destroyed. Giving these products back to the foreign shipper does little to incentivize them to address safety problems before shipping products to this country.”
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Answering FDA’s Request for Expanded Authorities at Ports
FDA’s Human Foods Program (HFP) requested the authority to destroy unsafe food imports in a list of legislative proposals complementing HFP’s Priority Deliverables for 2026. The agency said it had “observed importers exporting or attempting to re-import commercial-sized shipments that pose a significant public health concern” including food contaminated with pathogens and harmful chemicals. The agency specifically underlined a 2023 incident where a high-volume wholesaler pled guilty to attempting to re-import 2,100 cartons of frozen eels from China that were refused entry by FDA due to the presence of carcinogenic animal drugs.
FDA also argues that the authority to destroy unsafe food imports would also increase efficiency by reducing the need to involve the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the seizure of unsafe FDA-regulated products and allow the agency to require importers to pay the destruction costs upfront.
