The Food and the Drug Administration hasn't been testing some fish imports from China despite its recent "import alert."

The FDA had ordered shipments of shrimp, catfish, eel and other species be held for testing at U.S. ports.

But at least one million pounds of suspect Chinese seafood landed on American store shelves and dinner plates without being screened.

That's according to an investigation by The Associated Press, which reviewed over 4,000 shipping manifestos and found a quarter of the shipments got through without testing.

Although the FDA doesn't say the food in unsafe, it was to be checked for suspected carcinogens and antibiotics.

One former FDA worker says this raises questions about how the agency can protect against hidden dangers.

And New York Senator Charles Schumer calls it "an example of government failure at its worst."