Methylmercury in big, expensive tuna

January 24, 2008

So yesterday’s New York Times report on methylmercury in sushi tuna–a shocker because the most expensive tuna has the most of this toxin (of course it does; it’s bigger and accumulates more)–is now experiencing the expected backlash. Sushi eaters don’t seem to care much, and the tuna industry is fighting back through its public relations agency, the Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF). What is a tuna lover to do? If you aren’t pregnant, about to become pregnant, or a very young child (if you are, you should avoid big predatory fish like king mackeral, swordfish, tilefish, shark, and albacore tuna) the FDA and EPA say up to 6 ounces a week is OK. That leaves plenty of room for spending a fortune on sushi.

Here’s what Newsweek has to say about the CCF complaints. It’s great to see a news magazine blow the whistle on that group. Every word CCF says is paid for, and some tuna association pays it to say that methylmercury is not a problem.


1 Comment

  1. […] as the Director of Research for the Center. I reproduce it here in its entirety (Here’s the post he refers to. For more information about how this group operates, follow the links on one of my previous […]

    Pingback by What to Eat » Ah, the Center for Consumer Freedom — January 29, 2008 @ 1:50 pm

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.

Topics

activity additives agriculture alcohol Alice Waters allergies American Dietetic Association animals antibiotics antioxidants beef bisphenol A books Bottled Water breast feeding Brian Wansink burger king calcium calorie labels Calories Canada Cancer cdc center for consumer freedom Cereals childhood obesity China chocolate climate change cloned animals Coca Cola colbert consolidation corn corn sweeteners Country of Origin Labeling CSPI Dairy diabetes diet and energy drinks dietary guidelines diets e coli eat less move more eating liberally farm policy fast food fats and oils FDA fiber fish food art food assistance Food Composition food crisis food deserts food industry food marketing food miles food policy food safety food stamps food systems Framingham Heart Study Fruits and Vegetables FTC functional foods GAO genetically modified grassfed health claims hfcs Hugo drinks hyperactivity India infant formula Interviews irradiation juice drinks junk food kellogg kids diets King Corn Korea krill Labels lawsuits mad cow maps Margarines marketing to kids McDonalds Meat meat safety media melamine Michael Pollan Monsanto movies natural New Zealand obama action obesity obesity in kids Omega 3 Fats organic fish organic standards organics partnerships peanut butter PepsiCo pesticides pet food Phil Lempert photos Portion sizes price fixing price of food pyramid Quotes from What to Eat restaurants revolving door salt San Francisco Chronicle school food scoring systems soft drinks sponsorship stevia Sugars supermarkets supplements surveys sweeteners taste taxes television tomatoes toxins trans fat USDA vegetarian and vegan Vending machines videos vitamins wall street Whole Foods Whole Grains WIC Yearly Kos