Shrimp Cocktail: A Side of Radiation with The U.S’ Shrimp Import
- ILMCC UPH
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Written by: Braxton Gunawan & Bryant Jabta Ivan Situmorang
When a single radioactive trace was found in Indonesia’s shrimp imports, it was more than enough to scare the entire shrimp export sector. Even news on just a single shipment can lead to a 35% drop in shrimp prices and a rejection of 439 shipments amounting to USD $60.2million for Indonesia. What makes the case particularly interesting is that such a tiny level of radiation was actually responsible for the widespread alarm. This article examines the 2025 contamination incident when radioactive traces were found in Indonesian shrimp imports coming into U.S. grounds, and to show how one shocking news can transform into a whole international trade crisis.
Introduction
According to Indonesia’s Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, the United States of America (U.S.) absorbed around USD $881 million worth of Indonesian shrimp exports between January and September 2025, roughly one-fifth of Indonesia’s total seafood export value. Historically, the U.S. has been a dominant buyer: in 2024, they accounted for approximately 63.7% of Indonesia’s shrimp exports. This reliance means that any significant disruption in the U.S. demand poses not only economic risks to Indonesian exporters, but also threatens wider consumer confidence.
The Radioactive Shrimp Scandal
This crisis unfolded in August 2025, when U.S. food safety inspectors discovered traces of Caesium-137 (Cs-137) , a radioactive isotope that can damage DNA and raise a risk for cancer through long exposure, in shipments of Indonesian shrimp during routine checks. The contaminated products were traced to shipments from an Indonesian exporter, PT Bahari Makmur Sejati. Although the precise cause of the contamination remains unconfirmed, early findings suggested possible exposure through industrial scrap metal that had entered the seafood processing supply chain or contamination from shipping containers.
The findings led the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue a nationwide recall, affecting multiple retailers, including Walmart’s Great Value line. Indonesia’s government initiated rapid counter-measures, launching a large-scale investigation across 22 production facilities, and ordering immediate decontamination measures.
Caesium-137 Amount Detected
The FDA detected approximately 68 Bq/kg of Cs-137 in the contaminated shrimp, well below the 1,200 Bq/kg safety threshold. However, the regulators emphasized that long-term, repeated exposure even to low-dose exposure poses an elevated risk of cancer, due to its DNA-damaging effects. In such circumstances, precautionary action was deemed necessary to prevent chronic exposure in consumers.
Indonesia’s Monetary Losses
Despite contamination being identified in only a single shipment, foreign buyers are already hesitant to place new orders. According to Andi Tamsil, the head of Indonesia’s Shrimp Farmers Association, shrimp prices have dropped by up to 35% across several regions, and absorption from farmers has declined by around 30-35%. The South China Morning Post also reported that 439 containers of Indonesian shrimp were rejected, generating an estimated loss of USD $60.2 million for the sector.
Health and Safety Considerations
Although the acute public health risk from the contaminated shrimp was low, the primary concern was possible long-term exposure. The U.S. authorities issued strict safety guidance: consumers were instructed to discard recalled products immediately, and distributors and retailers were barred from selling or serving them. On the Indonesian side, the government responded by implementing emergency health protocols. These include the relocation of residents from highly contaminated areas and administering Prussian blue, a treatment for radocesium exposure, to nine people who tested positive.
International and National Implications
Responding to this incident, the U.S. placed Indonesian shrimp under Import Alert IA 99-51, allowing detention without physical examination. This measure is grounded in scientific evidence of contamination and functions as a temporary health-based trade restriction until Indonesia reestablishes safety controls. Indonesia launched a massive decontamination and investigation operation led by a task force in collaboration with the Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency (BAPETEN). Critically, with regard to the failure in domestic control over high-risk foreign materials, Indonesia confirmed it would immediately impose restrictions on scrap metal imports.
International Legal Implications
This crisis squarely implicates the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement). Under this agreement, members may adopt measures necessary to protect human, animal, or plant life, or health, as long as they are scientifically justified and are not used as a disguised restriction on trade. In this case, the FDA’s recall and import alert appear defensible as the presence of Cs-137 constitutes a scientifically verifiable hazard, and the measure is tailored to the contaminated product rather than being a total ban on Indonesian shrimp. For Indonesia, the SPS implications lie in its duty to ensure adequate sanitary controls before goods enter foreign markets. The suspected role of unregulated scrap metal indicates a domestic failure in exercising due diligence.
Supply Chain Vulnerability and Regulatory Integration
The 2025 radioactive shrimp crisis reveals the systemic vulnerabilities of globalized food supply chains, where even a single lapse in controlling hazardous industrial material can trigger wide-ranging economic losses, trade restrictions, and public health scares. It demonstrates that food safety cannot be separated from environmental regulation, industrial monitoring, or import-control rules.
For Indonesia, the incident highlights the urgent need to integrate nuclear-safety standards with food-processing oversight and scrap-metal import controls, while for importing states, it emphasizes the importance of consistent surveillance over high-risk products sourced from international supply chains. Ultimately, the crisis shows that safeguarding good safety requires a comprehensive regulatory framework grounded in cross-sector coordination and scientifically justified measures under international trade law.
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