Farmed Norwegian Salmon Safe to Eat

Farmed Norwegian salmon, repeatedly criticized as most toxic food in the world by a French TV program, can be safely eaten even by pregnant women, according to a new report by Norway's Scientific Committee for Food Safety (VKM). VKM stressed on the importance of eating fish among young and pregnant women because it has been proven that mothers eating fish had a positive effect on the development on the nervous system of fetuses and breast-fed babies. The warning on eating salmon, trout, mackerel and herring has now been lifted.

Norway is the world's biggest producer of farmed salmon. The Norwegian authorities had previously advised young and pregnant women to limit their consumption of oily fish to two meals per week so as not to expose their children to health risks.

Tests by the VKM show that one can eat more than a kilo of farmed salmon a week without risk. Farmed salmon now contains 70 percent less dioxins and PCBs than when Norwegian authorities last did major tests in 2006, and levels of mercury have been halved due to changes in what fish are now fed on.

Biologist and toxicologist, Janneche Utne Skaare of VKM said, "The benefits of eating fish far outweigh the insignificant risk of pollutants and other substances. Given the present level of the most dangerous toxins like PCBs, dioxins and mercury, even people who eat a lot of oily or white fish would not absorb them in harmful quantities."

Source: Medindia