How many seafood shipments from South Africa did FDA refuse in 2019?

FDA refused 1 shipment line of seafood from South Africa in 2019 through June 25, 2019, compared with 1 in 2018.

Why does FDA refuse seafood from South Africa?

FDA records a charge code on every refused shipment line. For seafood from South Africa the most frequent are FILTHY (filthy, putrid or decomposed substance, 8 lines), NO PROCESS (no scheduled process filed, 2 lines) and LIST INGRE (ingredients not listed, 1 line). A charge describes what FDA's reference table says about one shipment line, not about every firm.

Which import alerts cover seafood from South Africa?

As of October 26, 2026, the FDA import alerts for this category that list South Africa firms are Import Alert 16-120 (3 firms) and Import Alert 16-39 (1 firm). General food alerts numbered 99-xx can list South Africa firms too; see the country page.

FDA import refusals

FDA import refusals: seafood from South Africa

FDA category: Fishery/Seafood Products · October 2016 to June 25, 2019

FDA refused 11 seafood shipment lines from South Africa between October 2016 and June 25, 2019, 1 of them in 2019; the most refused products were mahi mahi and fish paste, most often for FILTHY (filthy, putrid or decomposed substance).

Data from FDA public records, last checked October 26, 2026.

11
seafood lines refused since October 2016: 1
refused so far in 2019: 5%
of all FDA refusals from South Africa: 2
firms with the most records, listed below

Seafood refusals from South Africa by year

Shipment lines FDA refused each year. The table has the same numbers as the chart.

FDA's refusal data starts on October 1, 2016, so 2016 covers three months.

Refusal lines by year
Year	Refusal lines	vs prior year
2019	1	0%
2018	1	-50%
2017	2
2016 (from Oct)	7

Mahi mahi refusals from South Africa

FDA refused 7 mahi mahi lines from South Africa between October 2016 and June 25, 2019, 64% of the seafood lines.

Mahi mahi product descriptions refused from South Africa
FDA product description	Lines	Share of seafood
Mahi mahi	7	63.6%

Recent mahi mahi refusals

Recent Mahi mahi refusals from South Africa
Date	Firm	Product	Charges
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source

Fish paste refusals from South Africa

FDA refused 1 fish paste line from South Africa between October 2016 and June 25, 2019, 9% of the seafood lines.

Fish paste product descriptions refused from South Africa
FDA product description	Lines	Share of seafood
Fish paste, fishery products, n.e.c.	1	9.1%

Recent fish paste refusals

Recent Fish paste refusals from South Africa
Date	Firm	Product	Charges
Feb 27, 2018	Peck'S AnchovetteBellville, South Africa	Fish paste, fishery products, n.e.c	UNSAFE COL NEEDS FCE NO PROCESS	Source

Fishery products refusals from South Africa

FDA refused 1 fishery products line from South Africa between October 2016 and June 25, 2019, 9% of the seafood lines.

Fishery products product descriptions refused from South Africa
FDA product description	Lines	Share of seafood
Fishery products, n.e.c.	1	9.1%

Recent fishery products refusals

Recent Fishery products refusals from South Africa
Date	Firm	Product	Charges
Oct 10, 2017	Pioneer Foods GroceriesSaldanha, South Africa	Fishery products, n.e.c	LIST INGRE NUTRIT LBL NO PROCESS	Source

Other seafood products refused from South Africa

Products refused from South Africa in seafood
Product group	Lines	Share
Hake	1	9.1%
Tuna	1	9.1%

Why FDA refused seafood from South Africa

FDA records a charge code on each refused line; one line can carry several.

Most frequent refusal charges for seafood from South Africa
Charge code	Meaning	Lines	Share
FILTHY	Filthy, putrid or decomposed substance	8	53%
NO PROCESS	No scheduled process filed	2	13%
LIST INGRE	Ingredients not listed	1	7%
MFRHACCP	Seafood HACCP requirements not met	1	7%
NEEDS FCE	Processor not registered for canned or acidified foods	1	7%
NUTRIT LBL	Nutrition information missing from label	1	7%
UNSAFE COL	Color additive unsafe under section 721	1	7%

Import alerts for seafood that list South Africa firms

Import alerts for seafood listing firms in South Africa
Alert	Covers	Red	Green
16-120	Seafood from processors not in compliance with HACCP	3
16-39	Ready-to-eat seafood: Listeria monocytogenes	1

South Africa seafood firms with the most FDA records

Counts are FDA records in SupplierRadar's data, not a ranking of quality.

South Africa seafood firms with the most FDA records
Firm	City	FDA records
Pristine Seafoods (Pty)Ltd	Germiston	7
Commercial Cold Storage	Port of Cape Town	1

Latest seafood refusals from South Africa

Latest FDA seafood refusals from South Africa
Date	Firm	Product	Charges
Jun 25, 2019	Commercial Cold StoragePort of Cape Town, South Africa	Tuna (albacore, yellowfin, bluefin, skipjack, etc.)	MFRHACCP	Source
Feb 27, 2018	Peck'S AnchovetteBellville, South Africa	Fish paste, fishery products, n.e.c	UNSAFE COL NEEDS FCE NO PROCESS	Source
Oct 10, 2017	Pioneer Foods GroceriesSaldanha, South Africa	Fishery products, n.e.c	LIST INGRE NUTRIT LBL NO PROCESS	Source
Feb 2, 2017	Kaytrad ColdstoreCape Town, South Africa	Hake	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source
Oct 25, 2016	Pristine Seafoods (Pty)LtdGermiston, South Africa	Mahi mahi	FILTHY	Source

Questions about seafood refusals from South Africa

How many seafood shipments from South Africa did FDA refuse in 2019?: FDA refused 1 shipment line of seafood from South Africa in 2019 through June 25, 2019, compared with 1 in 2018.
Why does FDA refuse seafood from South Africa?: FDA records a charge code on every refused shipment line. For seafood from South Africa the most frequent are FILTHY (filthy, putrid or decomposed substance, 8 lines), NO PROCESS (no scheduled process filed, 2 lines) and LIST INGRE (ingredients not listed, 1 line). A charge describes what FDA's reference table says about one shipment line, not about every firm.
Which import alerts cover seafood from South Africa?: As of October 26, 2026, the FDA import alerts for this category that list South Africa firms are Import Alert 16-120 (3 firms) and Import Alert 16-39 (1 firm). General food alerts numbered 99-xx can list South Africa firms too; see the country page.

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SupplierRadar is not affiliated with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Data comes from public FDA records and may contain errors. This is not legal advice; importers remain responsible for their supplier evaluations.