BP stalling on aid to Lousiana seafood marketing; 'Time for them to step up', says paper

Posted: Tuesday, September 14, 2010 BP stalling on aid to Lousiana seafood marketing; 'Time for them to step up', says paper SEAFOOD.COM NEWS [Times Picayune] (Editorial) Sept 14, 2010 - Perhaps BP officials think that Louisianians are going to give up trying to make the company repair the damage its oil gusher did to our economy. Not a chance. With the state's May 29 request to BP for a $173 million seafood certification program still on hold, Louisiana's congressional delegation and some of the region's most famous chefs and restaurateurs are calling on the company to step up. 'We have a very narrow window here when the nation is paying attention to how we will monitor and test our seafood to ensure its safety. We need immediate action from BP ... to restore our seafood industry and restaurants and help renew our state,' says a Sept. 10 letter to BP signed by John Besh, Frank Brigtsen and half a dozen other New Orleans restaurant industry luminaries. A Sept. 8 letter signed by Sens. Mary Landrieu and David Vitter and six House members conveys a similar message. Let's hope that they can finally get BP Managing Director Bob Dudley to act. More than half of respondents in an Associated Press poll done in August said they didn't trust Gulf seafood. Our fish, shrimp and oysters had a stellar reputation before BP's spill. The Jindal administration is only asking for help to repair that damage. If BP really wants to make things right, as the company claims, Mr. Dudley ought to quit stalling and approve the state's request. John Sackton, Editor And Publisher Seafood.com News 1-781-861-1441 Email comments to jsackton@seafood.com