Defend our Bivalves!

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration has made a decision to target the Gulf Coast oyster industry and force regulations which would cripple our $300 million industry and impact thousands of jobs. The rules would require that oysters harvested from the Gulf during the months of April through October be "sterilized" (most likely by irradiation), a process which kills the oyster and changes the taste and texture of the animal. As the FDA thumbs their nose at Gulf Coast seafood producers, they're checking under 2% of all imported seafood (including oysters) and testing only a percentage of that.  This figure becomes more poignant considering that imported seafood accounts for around 75% of all U.S. seafood consumption. The agency's reasoning is that 15 people die per year eating raw oysters, and this is an easy-to-fix problem. Though any lives lost are a tragedy, let's keep this number in perspective. Dozens more children die each year choking on hot dogs, thousands more die from eating tainted vegetables and meat. You can sign a petition which will go the the FDA here:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/save-raw-oysters