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New rules for oysters roil Louisiana

October 28, 2009 —

If you've never munched down on an oyster po-boy at Uglesich's, or balanced one of the perfectly prepared mollusks on an artichoke leaf at Corrine Dunbar's, the newly announced guidelines from the US Food and Drug Administration may not have much cultural impact. But they have put Louisiana in a dither.

Any oyster served between April and October will have to go through a sterilization process before it can be sold, the FDA announced this month. The new requirement is intended to combat a rare but potentially fatal bacterial illness which can be contracted from raw oysters, but any oyster served during this period will have to go through the same process. That, said Tommy Cvitanovich, owner of Drago’s restaurant, is "ludicrous."

Raw oysters, like those served on the halfshell at Acme Oyster House, will effectively be off limits for seven months of the year.

One processor called the new ruling a "nuclear processor" for the industry, but FDA officials said previous efforts to combat the ailment have fallen short.

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-- South Carolina House Speaker Bobby Harrell rejected the introduction of a resolution calling for the impeachment of Gov. Mark Sanford during the legislature's current special session.  Harrell said the resolution could be prefiled in November and taken up in next year's regular session.

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-- In an effort to get at so-called "pass-through pork," Alabama Gov. Bob Riley has ordered all four-year college and university presidents to notify him if legislators attempt to use their schools to hide money for special projects.