Mercury levels in Taiwan's fish

Cuisine Food & Drink
1

Hi all,

I’m just wondering - does anyone have or know where to find a comprehensive chart/list of the mercury levels of Taiwan’s fish (can be in Chinese or English)?

Alternatively, it would be great to see a list or info on which fish are safer to eat in Taiwan.

In my family we eat a lot of fish just bought from the day markets, and I often worry about mercury levels and so on, but I struggle to recognise most of the fish bought. When I buy fish myself, I mostly end up getting cod, as I know it’s supposed to have lower mercury, but my in-laws complain about it being frozen and therefore not fresh enough. My argument has mostly been I’d rather have something safer that’s been frozen, than something fresh, but not necessarily safe to eat.

2

[quote=“Dr Jellyfish”]Hi all,

I’m just wondering - does anyone have or know where to find a comprehensive chart/list of the mercury levels of Taiwan’s fish (can be in Chinese or English)?

Alternatively, it would be great to see a list or info on which fish are safer to eat in Taiwan.

In my family we eat a lot of fish just bought from the day markets, and I often worry about mercury levels and so on, but I struggle to recognise most of the fish bought. When I buy fish myself, I mostly end up getting cod, as I know it’s supposed to have lower mercury, but my in-laws complain about it being frozen and therefore not fresh enough. My argument has mostly been I’d rather have something safer that’s been frozen, than something fresh, but not necessarily safe to eat.[/quote]

FAIK, fish who have long lives tend to accumulate mercury. Fish who are not very old when caught will have less.

Thus Swordfish, Tuna will have higher mercury content.

3

[quote=“tommy525”][quote=“Dr Jellyfish”]Hi all,

I’m just wondering - does anyone have or know where to find a comprehensive chart/list of the mercury levels of Taiwan’s fish (can be in Chinese or English)?

Alternatively, it would be great to see a list or info on which fish are safer to eat in Taiwan.

In my family we eat a lot of fish just bought from the day markets, and I often worry about mercury levels and so on, but I struggle to recognise most of the fish bought. When I buy fish myself, I mostly end up getting cod, as I know it’s supposed to have lower mercury, but my in-laws complain about it being frozen and therefore not fresh enough. My argument has mostly been I’d rather have something safer that’s been frozen, than something fresh, but not necessarily safe to eat.[/quote]

FAIK, fish who have long lives tend to accumulate mercury. Fish who are not very old when caught will have less.

Thus Swordfish, Tuna will have higher mercury content.[/quote]

Yes, fish like Swordfish, Tuna, Shark, Sailfish, Marlin are all known to be high in mercury. It’s all the other fish that I’m not not familiar with - like the groupers, the red fish, and all the random chunks of fish my inlaws by from the day markets. They often buy a large kind of fish with white meat (brownish towards the skin), silvery skin, and it smells kind of metallic/acrid when fried, but it tastes alright.

4

Is it kind of round shaped?

5

Yes - if you mean the steaks that can be cut from it. They normally get it in that form. I ask what it is and they tell me its Taiwanese name, which I forget every time.

6

Oh, okay. I was thinking pomfret but not cutting any steaks from that.

7

I love pomfret. It smells and tastes nice. It’s just getting pricey and harder to come by.

8

Stick to deep sea fish. Less chance of mercury.

9

Generally the higher up the food chain the more metals, so stick to small size wild ocean fish and you’ll be pretty safe.

10

Generally the higher up the food chain the more metals, so stick to small size wild ocean fish and you’ll be pretty safe.[/quote]

Yes, fish higher up the food chain accumulate more as do longer lived ones. So avoid large, long-lived predatory fishes, like tunas and sharks. Eat small fish that eat krill or seaweed. Or just eat seaweed.

OP, I reckon you’ll just have to find out what species you’re eating first off, then google it yourself.

I googled “Pacific cod” and mercury and found this study.

Risk to consumers from mercury in Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) from the Aleutians: fish age and size effects

[quote]Abstract
While there has been considerable attention devoted to the risks to high level consumers from mercury in freshwater fish, relatively little attention has been devoted to saltwater fish. Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued advisories based on mercury for four saltwater species or groups of fish, there are few data on mercury levels generally, or on the risk these levels pose to the fish themselves or to consumers of marine fish. We examined total mercury levels in liver and muscle of Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) collected from the northern Pacific and Bering Sea waters around Nikolski, Amchitka, and Kiska Islands in the Aleutian Chain (Alaska). We were interested in whether there were differences in mercury levels as a function of location, weight, length, and age of the fish, and what risk mercury posed to the food chain, including people. Fish were aged by examining otoliths, and we measured selenium because of its reported protective effects against mercury. Regression models indicated that 27% of the variation in levels of mercury was due to tissue examined and age, while 67% of the variation in levels of selenium was due to tissue, length, and age. Mercury levels were significantly higher in the muscle than the liver, and the reverse was true for selenium. Mercury levels were negatively correlated with selenium levels, and positively correlated with length, weight, and age. There were no gender differences in mercury or selenium levels. The mean levels of mercury in muscle (0.17 ppm wet weight) are within the range known to cause adverse effects in sensitive birds and mammals. Only 4% of the Pacific cod samples had mercury levels above 0.5 ppm, the action level promulgated by many states and countries, and none were above the 1 ppm action level of the U.S. FDA.[/quote]

If the United States has almost no data on mercury in saltwater fish then it wouldn’t surprise me if Taiwan has none at all. They may have.

Also, you should find out if the ‘cod’ you buy is actually cod.

11

Does anyone think there is a lot of ‘local’ fish on Taiwan’s fish markets? Mercury levels should be spread out quite even throughout the world I guess.

12

Check this thread that says Taiwan is mostly a “fishless island” and that most fish comes in from other places.

forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtop … t=fishless

Article (in cooperation with CommonWealth Magazine) in China Post Link english.cw.com.tw/article.do?act … w&id=13541 (thanks Tiger Mountaineer).

Some quotes:

  • “Taiwan’s residents consume huge amounts of seafood, but much of it is imported rather than caught in the waters off the island”.
  • " why is it that fresh fish caught in neighboring waters is more expensive in neighboring waters is more expensive along the Hsinchu coast than in similar seafood restaurants in Taipei? Simply put, because fish in Taiwan is generally not freshly caught".
    – " Hordes of tourists from North and Central Taiwan flood the area on weekends and holidays, hoping to get a taste of the freshest seafood, without realizing that what they may be buying or eating is frozen fish caught in distant waters".
  • “Taiwan can be accurately described as a “fishless” island, relying mostly on cultivated fish and catches from distant waters to satisfy the high demand”
  • “The problem {according to Acadamia Sinica} is that Taiwan’s coasts were destroyed a long time ago by overfishing, habitat destruction, and environmental pollution]”.
  • “The auction markets in these ports in southern Taiawn now serve more as transaction and distribution centers. Fish are gathered from all over and then sent to traditional markets in Tainan and Kaohsiung, where they are then purchased by customers”.
  • “The special local flavor that once distinguished each port has completely disappeared”.
  • According to Fisheries Agency director-general James Sha, “Initially, we depended on fishing vessels to catch fish. Then we relied on fish smuggled in from China. Now we depend on imports”
13

[quote=“tango42”]Check this thread that says Taiwan is mostly a “fishless island” and that most fish comes in from other places.

forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtop … t=fishless

Article (in cooperation with CommonWealth Magazine) in China Post Link english.cw.com.tw/article.do?act … w&id=13541 (thanks Tiger Mountaineer).

Some quotes:

  • “Taiwan’s residents consume huge amounts of seafood, but much of it is imported rather than caught in the waters off the island”.
  • " why is it that fresh fish caught in neighboring waters is more expensive in neighboring waters is more expensive along the Hsinchu coast than in similar seafood restaurants in Taipei? Simply put, because fish in Taiwan is generally not freshly caught".
    – " Hordes of tourists from North and Central Taiwan flood the area on weekends and holidays, hoping to get a taste of the freshest seafood, without realizing that what they may be buying or eating is frozen fish caught in distant waters".
  • “Taiwan can be accurately described as a “fishless” island, relying mostly on cultivated fish and catches from distant waters to satisfy the high demand”
  • “The problem {according to Acadamia Sinica} is that Taiwan’s coasts were destroyed a long time ago by overfishing, habitat destruction, and environmental pollution]”.
  • “The auction markets in these ports in southern Taiawn now serve more as transaction and distribution centers. Fish are gathered from all over and then sent to traditional markets in Tainan and Kaohsiung, where they are then purchased by customers”.
  • “The special local flavor that once distinguished each port has completely disappeared”.
  • According to Fisheries Agency director-general James Sha, “Initially, we depended on fishing vessels to catch fish. Then we relied on fish smuggled in from China. Now we depend on imports”[/quote]

Well - that really sucks! I guess the fruit here is still genuine though… mostly anyway.

It also explains why you hear of Taiwanese fishing vessels getting into bother right out in the Pacific (closer to South America) - I’m sure I’ve seen a documentary where the South American fishing vessels were complaining about the Taiwanese. Could have just imagined it though. I’ve eaten too much tuna over the years, and mercury laden sandwiched (high slabs of predatory fish stakes purchased from Welcome, in a sandwich with mayo) - so mind isn’t what it used to be.

14

[quote=“Dr Jellyfish”][quote=“tommy525”][quote=“Dr Jellyfish”]Hi all,

I’m just wondering - does anyone have or know where to find a comprehensive chart/list of the mercury levels of Taiwan’s fish (can be in Chinese or English)?

Alternatively, it would be great to see a list or info on which fish are safer to eat in Taiwan.

In my family we eat a lot of fish just bought from the day markets, and I often worry about mercury levels and so on, but I struggle to recognise most of the fish bought. When I buy fish myself, I mostly end up getting cod, as I know it’s supposed to have lower mercury, but my in-laws complain about it being frozen and therefore not fresh enough. My argument has mostly been I’d rather have something safer that’s been frozen, than something fresh, but not necessarily safe to eat.[/quote]

FAIK, fish who have long lives tend to accumulate mercury. Fish who are not very old when caught will have less.

Thus Swordfish, Tuna will have higher mercury content.[/quote]

Yes, fish like Swordfish, Tuna, Shark, Sailfish, Marlin are all known to be high in mercury. It’s all the other fish that I’m not not familiar with - like the groupers, the red fish, and all the random chunks of fish my inlaws by from the day markets. They oftn buy a large kind of fish with white meat (brownish towards the skin), silvery skin, and it smells kind of metallic/acrid when fried, but it tastes alright.[/quote]

Worried about mercury in predatory fish? Than first read this before choosing your fish at the market.

[quote]Referring to a video by New Scientist magazine on Monday last week, which shows zooplankton consuming tiny beads of plastic, he said that marine litter could greatly compromise food safety.
Although zooplankton are at the bottom of the food chain, the plastics they consume accumulate in fish that feed on zooplankton and those fish are then eaten by humans.
“Over time, this could pose a greater threat to food safety than adulterated food oil. In the near future, even ocean fish could become a food safety issue,” he said.[/quote]

And believe me, there is no shortage of plastic stray trash in Taiwan. :bluemad:

15

I really love this simple way of thinking as if plastic disposed on land never reaches the sea … how about plastic bags left around the mountains, getting into a creek, than a river, a stream, finally reaching the see? :ponder: :ohreally:

16

no no, Taiwan is “the beautiful island”, the garbage problem hasn’t kicked in yet, even after that brilliant documentary. the locals have been too busy working. Shame, they still deliver piping hot soup in plastic bags to work here every day. poor things