Warning to not eat shellfish for Bay of Plenty
- Imogen Brophy
- 13 minutes ago
- 1 min read
Shellfish will need to be missing from plates this festive season after a health warning.
The public are being urged to avoid eating shellfish in multiple locations across the Bay of Plenty. A warning over eating raw or cooked shellfish from Opape to East Cape was issued by New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS).
Ten different shellfish are impacted including kina, pipi, mussels, oysters, cockles, scallops, pūpū (cat’s eyes), tuatua, toheroa and Cook’s turban. Symptoms from eating infected shellfish include difficulty swallowing, nausea, and headaches. NZFS warns paralysis, respiratory failure and, in severe cases, death could occur.
Pāua, crab, and crayfish need to be completely gutted before cooking to be edible. Finfish are not impacted by the health warning but gutting before cooking is still advised. Commercially harvested shellfish, which are available in local supermarkets and exported, are subject to strict monitoring to ensure they are safe to eat.
The paralytic toxins are caused by an algal bloom, which is an issue across the Bay.
"This type of algae produces a dangerous toxin and, when shellfish filter-feed, these toxins can accumulate in their gut and flesh.
"Generally, the more algae there are in the water, the more toxic the shellfish get," says NZFS deputy director-general Vincent Arbuckle.
A warning is in place for shellfish from Mount Maunganui to Ford road near Makatu.
Nine shellfish are impacted including tuatua, pipi, toheroa, pūpū (cat’s eyes), mussels, oysters, cockles, scallops and Cook’s turban.
The public are advised to not eat any shellfish until further notice and updates on changes will be on the Ministry of Primary Industries shellfish biotoxins alerts page.
