FOOD SAFETY AUTHORITY WARNING ON WILD SHELLFISH IN THE WEST

Date Published: 14-Aug-2012

The public is being warned not to gather and eat wild shellfish growing on the West and Southwest coasts of Ireland.The warning follows reports to the Food Safety Authority of IreIand in the past few weeks of approximately ten people in Galway, Mayo and Sligo becoming ill with suspected symptoms of shellfish poisoning.

The Food Safety Authority of IreIand suspects these reports are linked to the harmful algal blooms that are occurring naturally along the West and South West Coasts at present.

Wild shellfish may contain naturally occuring toxins that cannot be removed through cooking alone and the FSAI is recommending that consumers should purchase shellfish from reputable suppliers.

The organisation says this bloom is not related to an algal bloom called Karenia Mikimotai which has impacted on marine life along the west coast in recent months and has now begun to subside.