Americans Eating Less Fish, But Canned Tuna Consumption Stabilizesff

Americans are eating slightly less seafood, despite continuing reports of its health benefits.

Seafood consumption totaled 4.908 billion pounds in 2007, down from 4.944 billion a year earlier, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported Thursday.

That translates to 16.3 pounds of fish and shellfish per person, down from 16.5 pounds, the agency said.

Americans' favorite seafood remains shrimp at 4.1 pounds per person, down 0.3 pounds from 2006. Canned seafood, mainly tuna, held steady at 3.9 pounds per person, after some years of decline.

Overall the United States imports about 84 percent of its seafood, a steadily increasing proportion. Imports accounted for only 63 percent of U.S. seafood just a decade ago.