Islander
01-31-11, 11:23 PM
Megan Bedard
27 January 2011
Got mercury?
It's not exactly an appetizing question to ponder as you savor a fresh piece of yellowtail, but it's one you should ask.
According to a recent study by Got Mercury?, a San Francisco-based public awareness campaign, mercury levels in California's store-bought fish are sky-high.
The Turtle Island Restoration Network, which runs the campaign, said it tested 98 samples of fish from randomly selected grocery stores throughout California. It found that all 98 samples contained detectable amounts of mercury.
The biggest culprits?
81 percent of swordfish samples registered high levels of mercury (nine of those samples were more than 200 times over the maximum acceptable levels set by federal food safety officials).
20 percent of the tuna sushi samples were over the mercury action level determined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA).
Fewer than half of the stores posted signs advising pregnant women not to eat swordfish and other fish high in mercury.
Overall, one third of the fish samples were found to contain levels of mercury exceeding the USFDA’s mercury action level (1 part per million).
The California findings were part of Operation Safe Seafood, a national effort by Got Mercury? that randomly tests seafood for mercury levels. Got Mercury? reports that on average, 35 percent of grocery-store fish exceed the FDA's mercury action level.
http://tinyurl.com/4kdbhyu
27 January 2011
Got mercury?
It's not exactly an appetizing question to ponder as you savor a fresh piece of yellowtail, but it's one you should ask.
According to a recent study by Got Mercury?, a San Francisco-based public awareness campaign, mercury levels in California's store-bought fish are sky-high.
The Turtle Island Restoration Network, which runs the campaign, said it tested 98 samples of fish from randomly selected grocery stores throughout California. It found that all 98 samples contained detectable amounts of mercury.
The biggest culprits?
81 percent of swordfish samples registered high levels of mercury (nine of those samples were more than 200 times over the maximum acceptable levels set by federal food safety officials).
20 percent of the tuna sushi samples were over the mercury action level determined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA).
Fewer than half of the stores posted signs advising pregnant women not to eat swordfish and other fish high in mercury.
Overall, one third of the fish samples were found to contain levels of mercury exceeding the USFDA’s mercury action level (1 part per million).
The California findings were part of Operation Safe Seafood, a national effort by Got Mercury? that randomly tests seafood for mercury levels. Got Mercury? reports that on average, 35 percent of grocery-store fish exceed the FDA's mercury action level.
http://tinyurl.com/4kdbhyu