asked the Minister for Health if he will make a statement on a report in a British magazine to the effect that the concentration of mercury in fish in the Irish Sea is such that a person eating two pounds per week may be in danger of poisoning.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Mercury In Fish.
92.
I have seen the report in question. The reference in the article to possible toxic effects from mercury from the consumption of two pounds of fish a week are based on figures in United Kingdom Ministry reports which give the average mercury content of fish caught in the Irish Sea as 0.33 parts per million by weight, and a World Health Organisation suggested tolerable weekly intake of 0.3 milligrams of mercury per person.
The Irish Sea figures quoted relate mainly to fish caught off the United Kingdom coast; the average figure as shown in the same report for fish caught off the Irish coast is considerably less, and some analyses carried out by public analysts in Ireland have given even more favourable results for such areas. The report mentioned by the Deputy concluded that the risk of mercury poisoning from fish was slight in the United Kingdom. It is obviously less here.
Food, including fish and fish products, is examined as a routine for mercury content in the public analyst's laboratories from time to time and the situation is thus under constant review.