China has long had a real problem with piracy. DVDs. Games. Music. And… crabs? My fiancee pointed me to this article on the topic, which led me here.

[W]icked counterfeiters are trying to pass off tasty but mundane crabs without credentials as the elite crustaceans….To fight counterfeiting, the Suzhou Yangcheng Lake Hairy Crab Association now attaches metal rings and logos to the crustaceans for customers to check its identity.

Many hairy crabs are raised elsewhere, but the consensus, or the mythology, is that the Yangcheng Lake hairy crabs are the best — and they cost more. Those who raise them want to ensure that their crabs are recognized as No. 1, and priced accordingly.

Excellent. First off, I love any press that uses ‘wicked’ as an adjective – it’s a style points thing. What’s unclear is how they plan to make these branding implements uncopyable as well.