and fwiw, most have never heard of the fish -- particularly amazing since it has been one of the top 10 most consumed species in the U.S. for several years running. The trade name for product is usually "Swai" or "Striped Pangasius" or you will see the word "Basa" somewhere on the packaging. A completely screwed up situation with the lack of a good and well-known trade name, but that is another story. Many supermarkets do actually carry it today - most often as some frozen bag offering (although some sell it slacked out in the full-service cases). It is being used heavily by foodservice, so chances are you may have had it at some point as part of some "fried or baked fish of the day" somewhere, in a fish taco, etc...

On the trade front, while I am a passionate free-trader, I do accept that there are a range of opinions on things and complicated regimes that will always be in play -- especially depending on the industry, countries involved, etc... I expect industries to try and be "protectionist" if it is what they think will serve them best. I may battle against it and don't love it when governments endorse certain things, but it is part of life. What I'll never get over in this case is how we have just spit at Vietnam in particular given the facts and background at hand and with some of the most insidious rhetoric often either coming out of the mouths or at the very least specifically supported by both government officials and others looked up to as domestic industry "leaders".