Massachusetts legislators have offered a bill that would fine grocery stores and restaurants that mislabel seafood.

The legislation also would make Massachusetts the first state to ban sales of the oily escolar fish, known as the "ex-lax" fish and served in sushi. The fish is often mislabeled as white tuna, and sales of it are already banned in Italy and Japan.

The bill comes a year after The Boston Globe reported on a trend in which Massachusetts restaurants substituted seafood they sold with less desirable varieties. A subsequent probe last fall found that the practice had continued. Industry groups say mislabeled U.S. seafood costs consumers and the industry hundreds of millions of dollars each year.

Under the bill, violators who misrepresent fish like Atlantic cod, Atlantic halibut, red snapper or gray sole could face fines of up to $800. Repeat offenders could have their licenses suspended or taken away.

"We want to make sure if you're led to believe that you're eating fish off the bay, it really is off the bay in Massachusetts, and not 3,000 miles or 6,000 miles away," said state Rep. Ted Speliotis (D), co-chairman of the committee that proposed the legislation. "It's an attempt on a statewide level to bring some standards to the fish industry."

Meanwhile, Peter Christie, president of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, said he's opposed to the proposed escolar ban and penalties for first-time mislabeling offenders.

"If there are some people who enjoy escolar, they should be able to have it," Christie said. "But it should be called escolar. I believe in truth in menu. There should be a warning period, not fines, on first offenses when it's an innocent mistake being made. Education is needed, and distributors need to be more forthcoming with details" (Jenn Abelson, Boston Globe, Jan. 18). -- WW