Food Safety & Health

Shellfish harvesters and dealers in the U.S. state of Maine are scrambling to respond to a recall of mussels made on 15 September due to the presence of high levels of domoic acid.

The outbreak of the biotoxin closed several shellfish areas affected products sold by five Maine shellfish dealers. When ingested, domoic acid can cause amnesic shellfish poisoning, which can result in illness, brain damage, and memory loss. 

Maine shellfish deale… Read More

Carey Bomell, president of the International Association of Fish Inspectors (IAFI), brought the World Seafood Congress 2017 (WSC) in Reykjavik, Iceland, to a close with the announcement that the next edition of the biennial conference will be held in Penang, Malaysia.

Taking place in September 2019 and hosted by local partners that include government, the Penang Convention and Exhibition Bureau and the Penang Institute, it will be the first time … Read More

The global seafood sector has many compelling stories to tell with regard to being a vital source of food, nutrition, income, and livelihood for hundreds of millions of people around the world, but it could still make a much better job of sharing its successes with the people buying its products, said Carey Bomell, president of International Association of Fish Inspectors (IAFI).

“Seafood is a sector that faces both grand challenges and tre… Read More

A new study aims to allay consumers’ fears about eating seafood that could have been contaminated by the Fukushima radioactive release after the massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan in 2011.

After testing tuna, swordfish, and sharks in the waters near Japan, Hawaii, and California, a team of international researchers found no detectable levels of cesium, a metal with a large number of radioactive isotopes.

“The cesium isotopes are … Read More

The United States government is not complying with a federal law on labeling genetically engineered foods, a new lawsuit filed by the Center for Food Safety alleges.

Filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on 25 August, the Center for Food Safety, an environmental nonprofit based in San Francisco, California, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture has not studied “electronic and digital disclosures” (such… Read More

An outbreak of vibriosis – a bacterial infection that primarily affects the digestive tract – has sickened 25 people who ate raw oysters in the Seattle area last month. 

Vibriosis causes watery diarrhea, fever, headache, severe abdominal cramping, and vomiting, and can be a very serious condition for those who have compromised immune systems. Symptoms generally last for around a week and, in most cases, medical treatment is not r… Read More

Two mackerel products are being recalled because of levels of histamine that breach Irish food safety standards.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has issued recall notices for both Skellig Bay Mackerel Fillets, with the use by date of 30 June 2017, sold by Aldi Stores Ltd., and Lidl’s Inismara Irish Mackerel Fillets, with a use by date of 2 July 2017 due to elevated levels of histamine.  

Although the affected batches are pa… Read More

For the second straight congressional session, a representative from Texas has introduced a bill he claims would level the playing field between American fishermen and their foreign counterparts.

Late last month, U.S. Rep. Blake Farenthold filed the “Protecting Honest Fishermen Act of 2017.” The legislation calls for all seafood sold in America to be traceable from the time it was caught to the time it was served. Under current regula… Read More

Japanese television news shows have recently featured several segments about the parasitic nematode Anisakis simplex, which can be transmitted to people when they eat raw fish that has not been previously frozen to below 20 degrees Celsius. 

The publicity about the parasite, which causes violent abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting in those who consume it, has depressed sashimi sales throughout Japan. The wholesale prices of a few species, s… Read More

High levels of paralytic shellfish poison (PSP) have temporarily left some of Alaska’s shellfish and oyster farmers out of commission.

Although the toxin has been previously spotted in areas such as Southeast Alaska, Prince William Sound and Kodiak, the last couple of years have seen PSP and its affects travel to troubling new locales, Kimberly Stryker, program manager for Alaska's Food Safety and Sanitation Program, told Alaska Dispat… Read More