New — March 2026
How FAT Scores Seafood Labels
Farm Animal Transparency evaluates seafood labels using the same two questions that drive every meat score: what information is disclosed, and how credible is the claim behind it. The 15-category framework is identical in structure — what changes are the categories themselves, adapted to the regulatory, supply-chain, and species-identification realities of seafood.
The 15 Seafood Categories FAT Evaluates
Every seafood label is evaluated across all 15 categories — no cherry-picking, no hiding gaps.
FSIS inspection mark (catfish) or FDA registration. Correct agency is itself a scored disclosure.
Common and scientific name verified against the FDA Seafood List of acceptable market names.
Species strain (farmed) or stock population (wild). Equivalent to Breed in the meat model.
Country of harvest; COOL compliance under 7 CFR Part 60, including production method disclosure.
Named farm (aquaculture) or vessel name, registration, and home port (wild-caught).
FSIS establishment number (catfish) or FDA facility registration; determines enforcement dataset queried.
Wild vs. farmed; gear type and bycatch (wild); aquaculture system and feed composition (farmed).
Stocking density, slaughter method, live transport. Missing is the norm — scored as a disclosure gap.
Fresh / frozen / previously frozen status; USDA grade (catfish); glaze percentage; added water.
Phosphate glazing (STPP), added water, preservatives, colorants; allergen statements; dietary claims.
Antibiotic claims; banned residues (malachite green, nitrofurans) in imports; FDA refusal history.
Grow-out period (farmed) or harvest season (wild). Rarely disclosed; Missing is expected on most labels.
FSIS enforcement (catfish) or FDA import alerts, SIMP compliance, HACCP violations (all other seafood).
MSC/ASC certs; bycatch and gear impact; EPA ECHO violations; NPDES discharge compliance. Website only.
Corporate parent; Thai Union, Mowi, Vietnamese processors; market share; integrator vs. independent. Website only.
The Two-Question Evaluation Model
FAT asks the same two questions for every category on every label.
Question 1 — Disclosure Status: "Did the label tell us this?"
The label clearly discloses this information.
Example: "Wild-caught, MSC Certified, North Pacific Alaskan Pollock."
Some information is present but details are limited or non-specific.
Example: "Wild-caught" with no fishery, vessel, or certification named.
The label does not address this category. A lack of disclosure is information — not an accusation of misconduct.
Question 2 — Claim Credibility: "How reliable is what they told us?"
When a category is Known or Partial, FAT evaluates how strongly the claim is backed by evidence. When Missing, there is nothing to rate for credibility.
Independently certified by a recognized third party. For wild-caught: MSC. For farmed: ASC or BAP. The seafood equivalents of USDA Organic or Certified Humane.
FDA or USDA/FSIS reviewed and approved the label language — e.g., COOL-compliant country of origin, USDA FSIS catfish inspection mark. Government-backed, no independent audit.
Claim appears on the label with no known independent or government-backed verification. Examples: "sustainably sourced," "ocean-fresh," "responsibly farmed," "natural."
Full Category Definitions
What FAT looks for in each of the 15 seafood categories.
| # | Category | What FAT Looks For |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Regulatory Required Language | For catfish / Siluriformes: USDA FSIS inspection legend, establishment number, safe handling instructions. For all other seafood: FDA processor registration number, HACCP compliance mark. The applicable agency is itself a scored disclosure — wrong mark or no mark is scored as Missing. |
| 2 | Species Identity | Common name and scientific name matched against the FDA Seafood List. "Catfish" is legally restricted to Ictalurus spp. only — Vietnamese tra and basa cannot carry that label in the U.S. Any discrepancy with the FDA Seafood List is flagged as potential mislabeling. |
| 3 | Strain / Variety | For farmed fish: specific species strain (e.g., channel catfish, Atlantic vs. Pacific salmon). For wild-caught: stock or population if disclosed. Functionally equivalent to Breed in the meat model. |
| 4 | Country / Origin | Country of harvest or production; COOL compliance under 7 CFR Part 60. Seafood COOL also requires disclosure of production method (wild or farmed) alongside origin. Studies find 59% of retail catfish samples non-compliant. |
| 5 | Farm / Vessel / Fishery | Named farm and location (aquaculture) or vessel name, registration number, and home port (wild-caught); specific fishery or water body of origin. Can the product be traced to a single source? |
| 6 | Processor | Establishment number, facility name, and location. For catfish: USDA FSIS establishment number — enables real-time FSIS enforcement lookup. For other seafood: FDA facility registration number — enables FDA import alert and HACCP violation lookup. |
| 7 | Production Method & Feed | Wild-caught vs. farm-raised (mandatory under COOL). For wild: fishing gear type and bycatch implications. For farmed: aquaculture system type and feed composition. Wild-caught receive N/A for feed; farmed receive N/A for gear. |
| 8 | Animal Welfare | Stocking density, slaughter and handling method, live transport conditions. Third-party standards (ASC, Global GAP, BAP) address aquaculture welfare. Missing is the most common outcome and is scored as a disclosure gap, not a violation. |
| 9 | Quality & Handling | Fresh, frozen, previously frozen, or thawed-for-sale — and whether clearly disclosed. "Fresh" is a regulated term; labeling previously frozen product as fresh is a common violation. Also: USDA grade (catfish), size grade, glaze percentage, added water or ice disclosure. |
| 10 | Dietary Attributes & Additives | Added water, sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP) phosphate glazing, salt, preservatives, and colorants — and whether disclosed. Allergen statements. Dietary claims (keto, paleo, Whole30, no additives). Phosphate glazing inflates net weight and must be declared but frequently is not. |
| 11 | Medicine / Antibiotics / Chemicals | Antibiotic-free claims and verification tier. Banned substance compliance for catfish: cross-referenced against FSIS residue testing for malachite green, nitrofurans, and other prohibited compounds common in Southeast Asian aquaculture. For other imports: FDA import refusal history. |
| 12 | Age at Harvest | Age or grow-out period disclosed for farmed species; harvest season for wild fisheries. Rarely appears on seafood labels — Missing is expected for most products and is scored as a gap rather than a failure. |
| 13 | Enforcement & Compliance | For catfish: FSIS recalls, administrative actions, humane handling violations, quarterly enforcement, chemical residue violations, pathogen testing. For all other seafood: FDA import alerts, SIMP compliance, HACCP violation history. |
| 14 | Environmental Impact | Carbon, water, and sea/land use claims; EPA ECHO violations; sustainability certifications (MSC for wild, ASC/BAP for farmed); bycatch rate and gear impact disclosures for wild-caught. Website only — not yet in the FAT App. |
| 15 | Economic Concentration / Foreign Ownership | Corporate parent and beneficial owner; foreign ownership (Thai Union, Mowi, Vietnamese processors); processor's market concentration share; independent vs. vertically integrated operation. Website only — not yet in the FAT App. |
Seafood vs. Meat: Where the Scoring Differs
The same 15-category framework applies to both. Eight categories have meaningful differences.
| # | Meat Category | Seafood Equivalent | Key Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | USDA / FSIS Required Language | Regulatory Required Language | Catfish = USDA FSIS inspection; all other seafood = FDA registration. Wrong mark is scored as Missing. |
| 2 | Species | Species Identity | Seafood adds scientific name verification against the FDA Seafood List. Species mislabeling is a documented fraud vector in seafood; not a significant concern in beef, pork, or poultry. |
| 3 | Breed | Strain / Variety | Same concept — sub-species differentiation. Vocabulary differs; scoring logic is identical. |
| 4 | Country / Origin | Country / Origin | Seafood COOL also requires production method (wild or farmed) as a combined disclosure. Meat COOL does not. |
| 5 | Farm / Ranch | Farm / Vessel / Fishery | Wild-caught seafood has no farm. Vessel name, registration, and fishery are the traceable source identifiers for wild product. |
| 6 | Processor | Processor | Identical scoring logic. FSIS vs. FDA number determines which enforcement dataset is queried in Category 13. |
| 7 | Feed | Production Method & Feed | Seafood splits first on wild vs. farmed — wild-caught receive N/A for feed and are scored instead on fishing gear and method. |
| 8 | Animal Welfare | Animal Welfare | Same scoring. Seafood welfare is far less regulated — Missing is the norm, which is itself a scored finding. |
| 9 | Quality / Palatability | Quality & Handling | Seafood adds the fresh / frozen / previously-frozen disclosure. Labeling previously frozen product as fresh is a regulated violation. Meat has no equivalent thaw-status requirement. |
| 10 | Dietary Attributes | Dietary Attributes & Additives | Seafood expands this category to include phosphate glazing (STPP) and added water — additives that inflate net weight. Not scored in the meat model. |
| 11 | Medicine / Antibiotics / Hormones | Medicine / Antibiotics / Chemicals | Seafood adds banned import residues: malachite green, nitrofurans, and other prohibited compounds documented in Southeast Asian aquaculture imports. |
| 12 | Age at Slaughter | Age at Harvest | Same concept; different terminology. Both are rarely disclosed and expected to score Missing on most labels. |
| 13 | FSIS Enforcement Protocols | Enforcement & Compliance | Catfish: same FSIS dataset as meat. All other seafood: FDA import alerts, SIMP compliance, HACCP violations. Establishment number vs. FDA registration routes FAT to the correct database. |
| 14 | Environmental Impact | Environmental Impact | Seafood adds NPDES effluent discharge permit compliance, bycatch rates, and gear-type habitat impact. Core sub-elements apply identically to both. |
| 15 | Economic Concentration / Foreign Ownership | Economic Concentration / Foreign Ownership | Same scoring. Seafood processing is dominated by Thai, Vietnamese, Norwegian, and Chinese companies rather than the Brazilian and Chinese conglomerates in U.S. meat packing. |
What the FAT Evaluation Tells You
The FAT seafood evaluation shows how much a label discloses across all 15 categories, and how credible each claim is. FAT does not assign a single letter grade — food systems are too complex for a single number to be meaningful.
Instead, FAT gives you the tools to compare two products on the same terms: category by category, claim by claim, credibility tier by credibility tier. You decide what matters most.
🥩 How FAT Scores Meat Labels → See the full 15-category meat scoring methodology — beef, pork, chicken, turkey, and lamb.See FAT Seafood Scoring in Action
Download the FAT App and scan any seafood label to get the full evaluation — disclosure status, credibility tiers, and enforcement records — all in one place.
Get the FAT App Seafood Research Library