It's the Easter holidays and tens of thousands of Aussies will be at the beach and jetty or out on their boats casting a line in the water in search of a fish feast.
Seafood is generally safe and healthy, but according to the Food Safety Information Council Australians are affected, and even hospitalised, from illnesses such as bacterial and fish parasite infections, scombroid poisoning and ciguatera poisoning from their own catch.
Correct handling
Cathy Moir, Council Chair said that many of these cases could be significantly reduced with correct handling methods and knowledge of what to look out for.
The Council today released food safety advice to Australia's estimated 4.2 million recreational fishers, as well as general consumers.
Tips to help make sure your catch is safe:
- Be aware of warnings from local authorities about any pollution risks in the waters where you are fishing. This includes chemical contamination, flood water contamination by sewage, blooms of algae, or shellfish toxins.
- It's recommended to not gather shellfish or crustaceans but to purchase them instead from reliable retailers as they are a particular risk of contamination
- Chill fish using ice or an ice slurry as soon as possible after capture, particularly for large predators such as tuna, mackerel, marlin, skipjack and bonito, to prevent bacterial growth and keep caught fish fresh longer
- Gut the fish as soon as you have caught it and either freeze or cook the fish to 63C to kill any parasites.
- Care should be taken when eating Oilfish for the first time and it should be avoided if you are pregnant or have bowel problems
- Fish is great for your health however, some of the larger species of fish, such as Orange Roughy, Catfish, Shark, Marlin and Swordfish, have levels of naturally occurring mercury. Pregnant women or women planning pregnancy and children should only eat 1 portion per week of Orange Roughy (Deep Sea Perch) or Catfish and no other fish that week, or 1 portion per fortnight of Shark (Flake) or Billfish (Swordfish/Broadbill and Marlin) and no other fish that fortnight. A portion size for a child 6 years and under is 75g and a portion for a pregnant women or women planning pregnancy is 150 grams. For the rest of the population 1 portion is 150 grams and they should eat only 1 portion per week of Shark (Flake) or Billfish (Swordfish/Broadbill and Marlin) and no other fish that week. More information here
"We recommend you don't gather seaweed from the shore because of contamination from sea creatures, sewage, pollutants and microplastics. Additionally, naturally high levels of iodine in some brown seaweed can be particularly harmful to foetuses and the young so pregnant and breastfeeding women, and children, should not eat seaweed," said Ms Moir.
People picking up their seafood from a retailer this Easter should always take it straight home in a cooler with ice and then refrigerate at 5°C or under.
Eileen Wood
I'm a senior news journalist at The Senior newspaper, the leading publication bringing targeted news on issues affecting older Australians. We cover NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, SA and WA. If you have a story idea I would love to hear it. You can email me: eileen.wood@thesenior.com.au or phone The Senior 02-4355-5000, mob. 0487 495 805
I'm a senior news journalist at The Senior newspaper, the leading publication bringing targeted news on issues affecting older Australians. We cover NSW, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, SA and WA. If you have a story idea I would love to hear it. You can email me: eileen.wood@thesenior.com.au or phone The Senior 02-4355-5000, mob. 0487 495 805
