In 2003, California banned the sale of untreated Gulf Coast oysters harvested in summer months and saw the number of Vibrio-related deaths plummet from about six per year to zero in the five years since, according to CSPI. Retailers such as Legal Sea Foods and Costco only sell Gulf Coast oysters that have been processed with cold pasteurization, hydrostatic pressure or another technology that can kill Vibrio vulnificus without affecting taste. Those and similar processes cost only pennies per oyster.

“Letting untreated Gulf Coast oysters reach consumers this summer will needlessly sentence several of them to death,” said CSPI Staff Attorney Sarah Klein. “Unfortunately the Food and Drug Administration has abdicated its responsibility to ensure shellfish safety and instead lets the industry police itself with minimal oversight. That’s proven to be a deadly mistake.”