Don't get tagged by your catch!

[Cast-Iron]

An article I came across this afternoon should serve to remind us all of the unseen hazards from the massive amounts of radioactive waste now circulating in the Pacific Ocean. Contamination almost certainly introduced from one of the "compromised" reactors at TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi facility. I know a lot of rural Alaskans count on pacific salmon as part of their subsistence but I am curious, is any agency there (federal/state/local) monitoring the catch for elevated levels of radiation? And if so, has anything been rejected due to unsafe levels of radiation?

http://elitedaily.com/news/world/fis...mit-radiation/

[Ken]

I was just digging in to a plate of broiled ATLANTIC cod when I clicked on this thread.... We kind of expected that to happen, didn't we?

About ⅔ of my "meat" consumption is seafood. I've cut way, way back on Sushi (much of which is flown in from Japan) since the disaster struck. Other than that, I only buy Atlantic seafood other than for shrimp, which must be labeled as "Gulf Shrimp." I buy most of my fish straight off the boat or from wholesalers on the waterfront in New Bedford. I'll only order fish from restaurants I KNOW do the same.

I've been doing this for decades for a few reasons: I prefer Atlantic fish, I know it's fresh, and I know it's not mislabeled, which happens about half of the time in restaurants and supermarkets.

I still chuckle when I remember the clown who ran a restaurant in Vineyard Haven when I was in my early 20's. I stopped in and ordered scallops at the start of the season. When my plate arrived, what I got was punched out skate. I ruined that guy's day for sure, LOL.

[1stimestar]

Yes there is increased radioactive reading in our fish. I'm not sure where, but I did read it from what I remember as being a reliable source. I don't know that there is any monitoring, I assume there is, especially with our world famous research school. I also know that it will not matter! Those of us with a choice will be going light on the salmon this year. Those who do not have a choice will simply eat it as they have been for 20,000 years.

[Cast-Iron]

I was just digging in to a plate of broiled ATLANTIC cod when I clicked on this thread.... We kind of expected that to happen, didn't we?

About ⅔ of my "meat" consumption is seafood. I've cut way, way back on Sushi (much of which is flown in from Japan) since the disaster struck. Other than that, I only buy Atlantic seafood other than for shrimp, which must be labeled as "Gulf Shrimp." I buy most of my fish straight off the boat or from wholesalers on the waterfront in New Bedford. I'll only order fish from restaurants I KNOW do the same.

I've been doing this for decades for a few reasons: I prefer Atlantic fish, I know it's fresh, and I know it's not mislabeled, which happens about half of the time in restaurants and supermarkets.

I still chuckle when I remember the clown who ran a restaurant in Vineyard Haven when I was in my early 20's. I stopped in and ordered scallops at the start of the season. When my plate arrived, what I got was punched out skate. I ruined that guy's day for sure, LOL.

I'd be a bit cautious about gulf sourced seafood there, Ken. I recently asked an oyster farmer I know about his oyster beds since the BP spill. He said his family's settlement alone amounted to over $6 million in damages. The beds were ruined and won't likely ever produce again. He mentioned 1 or 2 trustworthy suppliers based somewhere in New Orleans, but they only sell to restaurtants. He won't eat anything from that part of the gulf anymore and suggested I don't either. The Corexit (sp?) that was dumped into the gulf to send the oil to the seabed may have longer lasting effects on the gulf's ecosystem than anyone realized or admitted. But no mention of that in the mainstream media. I'd stick with atlantic sourced seafood for now and use a dosimeter if you wanted to test your king crab entree at Red Lobster. It really pi$$es me off what these corporate giants have done and will likely continue to do to our oceans. Now more than ever, when it comes to seafood, CAVEAT EMPTOR!

[Ken]

I'd be a bit cautious about gulf sourced seafood there, Ken. I recently asked an oyster farmer I know about his oyster beds since the BP spill. He said his family's settlement alone amounted to over $6 million in damages. The beds were ruined and won't likely ever produce again. He mentioned 1 or 2 trustworthy suppliers based somewhere in New Orleans, but they only sell to restaurtants. He won't eat anything from that part of the gulf anymore and suggested I don't either. The Corexit (sp?) that was dumped into the gulf to send the oil to the seabed may have longer lasting effects on the gulf's ecosystem than anyone realized or admitted. But no mention of that in the mainstream media. I'd stick with atlantic sourced seafood for now and use a dosimeter if you wanted to test your king crab entree at Red Lobster. It really pi$$es me off what these corporate giants have done and will likely continue to do to our oceans. Now more than ever, when it comes to seafood, CAVEAT EMPTOR!

Thanks, C-I. The ONLY thing I eat from the Gulf is shrimp. Seems safer than that stuff they import from Bangladesh and Vietnam.

I'm an oyster snob as well. Nothing from the Gulf - only Cuttyhunks, Wellfleets, Island Creeks, Tomahawks, Duxburys, Cotuits, and Wiannos for this kid. And yes, I can tell one from the other, except for the Cotuits/Wiannos and the Duxburys/Island Creeks. The taste is as distinct as comparing Coronas, Budweisers, Bule Moons, and Wachusetts.

Don't do King Crab - Dungeness RULES! And Red Lobster? I ate at one about 20 years ago. Once. Only once.

[Rick]

Both the FDA, Canadian Food Inspection Agency as well as the Alaska Department of Fish and Game are chartered with monitoring levels of radiation in fish. I assume other state's have agencies doing the same. Don't know any more than that.

http://www.fda.gov/ucm/groups/fdagov.../ucm253896.pdf

http://www.epi.hss.state.ak.us/eh/ra...fetyAlaska.pdf

[RandyRhoads]

That looks like a China Cod/ Black and Yellow Rockfish I spear and eat all the time...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fG7038E7J4