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By Theo Burman
Live News Reporter
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Louisiana Senator John Kennedy, a Republican, compared radioactive shrimp to the deadly extraterrestrial creatures from the Alien film franchise.
His remarks came during a Senate hearing on water contamination, where he suggested that consuming tainted seafood could leave people resembling a Xenomorph.
Why It Matters
Kennedy's comments come as recalls of frozen shrimp feared to be radioactive have been designated the second-highest health hazard warning, a Class II, by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Florida-based Beaver Street Fisheries is voluntarily recalling 33,164 pounds of frozen raw shrimp over concerns that certain lots may be contaminated with cesium-137 (Cs-137), a man-made radioisotope produced in nuclear fission. The products were available in Walmart stores in several states from July 8 until July 28.
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What to Know
Kennedy, who has built a reputation for theatrical moments in the Senate, was pressing officials about water safety issues and the risk of contamination spreading into the food chain.
Kennedy was speaking at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing when he dropped the reference to Ridley Scott's iconic horror franchise.
"This is a photograph of the alien from the movie 'Alien'. This is what you could end up looking like if you eat some of the raw frozen shrimp being sent to the U.S. by other countries," he said.
"Because the shrimp is radioactive! I kid you not. It has a radioactive isotope in it called cesium-137. It'll kill you! Even if it doesn't turn you into the alien, if you eat this stuff, I guarantee it'll grow you an extra ear.
"That was bad enough, the FDA issued a recall. A few days later, it happened again... It's not being inspected. It's supposed to be! It's supposed to be inspected by NOAA as part of the Department of Commerce.
"And yes, they're inspecting some of it, about 1 percent. On a good day, 2 percent. The U.K. inspects 50 percent of the foreign seafood coming into its nation. Even China does a better job than the U.S. This is unconscionable; there's no excuse for it.
Kennedy's state is one of the largest seafood producers in the U.S., particularly for shrimp, which makes food safety a politically sensitive topic for Louisiana.
What People Are Saying
An FDA statement issued on August 19 said: "At this time, no product that has tested positive or alerted for Cesium-137 (Cs-137) has entered the U.S. commerce."
A Beaver Street Fisheries announcement published on the FDA's website on August 22 said: "Traces of Cs-137 are widespread and can be present in the environment at background levels, and at higher levels in water or foods grown, raised, or produced in areas with environmental contamination. The primary health effect of concern following longer term, repeated low dose exposure (e.g., through consumption of contaminated food or water over time) is an elevated risk of cancer, resulting from damage to DNA within living cells of the body."
What Happens Next
The Senate continues to hold hearings on environmental health risks, including the safety of water supplies and seafood harvested in areas near industrial sites.
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