A Louisiana senator issued a stern warning on the United States Senate floor over the consumption of imported shrimp.
Sen. John Kennedy presented on the Senate floor with a photo featuring an alien from the movie “Alien.”
Kennedy claimed that shrimp from other countries that don’t abide by the same safety rules in the United States could “turn you into an alien.”
Kennedy was referencing shrimp that was recalled by Walmart due to concerns of the seafood being radioactive.
“If you eat it, how could you end up looking like the alien in ‘Alien?’ Because the shrimp was radioactive. I kid you not. It had a radioactive isotope in it called cesium-137. It will kill you. Even if it doesn’t turn you into the alien if you eat this stuff, I guarantee you will grow an extra ear,” Kennedy said during his remarks.
Kennedy was critical of imported shrimp, encouraging people to eat shrimp from local farmers.
“Now, I am biased. I believe in homegrown Louisiana shrimp, fresh out of the Gulf, not radioactive. But I understand that some stores prefer to buy foreign shrimp because it is cheaper. Now we know why: The damn stuff is radioactive,” Kennedy said.
He also called for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to do a better job of inspecting imported shrimp.
“NOAA needs to do a better job of inspecting the shrimp that is sold from other countries that don’t abide by the same standards we do to the consumers of the United States of America,” Kennedy said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning not to eat, sell or serve certain frozen shrimp products sold at Walmart stores in several states on Aug. 19.
The impacted raw frozen shrimp products were sold under the Great Value brand at Walmart stores in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and West Virginia.
The FDA collected multiple samples for testing and confirmed the presence of the radioactive material in breaded shrimp, which prompted an investigation into other products from Indonesia’s BMS Foods.
While the FDA says none of the contaminated products hit store shelves, the agency is still urging those who purchased the frozen shrimp products listed above to throw them away.
It is important to note that Kennedy’s claims regarding the impacts of ingesting the frozen shrimp are likely hyperbole and not to be considered as medical advice.
READ MORE:Sen. John Kennedy claims people who eat foreign shrimp will ‘turn into aliens’
