The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a report this past week advising the public of recent illnesses caused by consuming fish found near the Louisiana coast and contaminated with ciguatera toxin, a harmful substance responsible for Ciguatera Fish Poisoning. The toxin led to more than 30 reported cases of CFP in consumers across the country since 2007, according to FDA spokesperson Stephanie Kwisnek. Harvested in waters south of the Texas-Louisiana coastline, the toxic fish were caught in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, near the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Kwisnek said CFP occurs in tropical reef fish who consume the ciguatera toxin from microscopic algae absorbed through their diet. Ironically, the FDA released the report just one day before the Roman Catholic Lenten season began Ash Wednesday. This may alarm some Roman Catholics who substitute fish for meat on Fridays in observance of the religious practice. She said the FDA linked several recent CFP outbreaks from this past year to fish captured within miles of the marine sanctuary, a region considered rare to hold contaminated fish in the past. Following the confirmation, the FDA issued a letter to seafood industries classifying CFP as a food safety hazard. The FDA warned snapper, grouper, hogfish and other large-size fish harvested within 10 miles of the sanctuary are most threatening. Additionally, the FDA cautioned agencies of amberjack and barracuda found within 50 miles of the sanctuary. Because CFP is caused by consuming tropical reef fish, the letter urges seafood processors to update their Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point plans. Agencies use HACCP measures to assure food safety from harvest to consumption. According to the FDA, CFP frequency in the United States is unknown, but the administration is concerned that the number of annual reported illnesses is largely under-reported. Some seafood lovers may be wondering if they are at risk of consuming a fish carrying the ciguatera toxin. Gary Marino, co-manager of Mike Anderson’s Seafood Restaurant and Oyster Bar on Lee Drive, said although there is a reason for concern among fish producers, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries tracks all fish coming through the restaurant. He also said the restaurant does not serve any tropical reef fish, only bay fish. The restaurant serves mahi mahi, black drum, bass snapper and catfish – all bay fish. “But most consumers don’t know the difference between reef fish and bay fish,” he said. Kwisnek said cooking or freezing fish does not kill ciguatera toxins, and laboratory testing is the only detection method. She said CFP symptoms include nausea, vomiting, muscle pain and other symptoms, sometimes lasting a few weeks. But she said the poisoning is rarely fatal. “If people are concerned about ciguatera fish poisoning, they should ask where the fish was purchased and avoiding eating the species mentioned from the Northern Gulf of Mexico near the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary,” Kwisnek said.
—-Contact Natalie Messina at [email protected]