Fish from Canada being sold in Florida and there’s a little problem with them called BOTULISM. That pretty well sums it up, but here are the details from our friendly U.S. Food & Drug Administration:
(FDA) is warning retailers and food service operators not to offer for sale ungutted, salt-cured alewives (also called gaspereaux fish) from Michel & Charles LeBlanc Fisheries Ltd., CAP-PELÈ, New Brunswick, Canada, because the fish may contain the Clostridium botulinum (C. botulinum) toxin. Consumers should not consume the product.
C. botulinum toxin can cause botulism, a serious and sometimes life-threatening condition. The toxin cannot be removed by cooking or freezing.
The fish were imported into the United States and sent to these Florida distributors:
Quirch Foods Inc.
Den-Mar Exports LLC
Dolphin Fisheries Inc.
Labrador & Son Food Products Inc.
The fish were packed in 30-pound, white plastic pails with green plastic lids. The brand name "Michel & Charles LeBlanc Fisheries Ltd.," appears on the side of the pails, as does the phrase "Product of Canada." One hundred seventy-three (173) 30 lb. pails of fish were distributed. The fish may have been repacked or sold loose by retailers in Florida.
The FDA considers any ungutted fish over five inches in length that is salt-cured, dried, or smoked, such as the ungutted, salt-cured alewives/gaspereaux fish, to be adulterated because it could contain the C. botulinum toxin. The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services discovered the ungutted alewives/gaspereaux fish from Michel & Charles LeBlanc Fisheries Ltd. being sold in stores and alerted the FDA. The FDA prohibits the sale of this adulterated product in the United States.
No illnesses have yet been associated with the bad fish. For more information, go here.