Extension Report

Baldwin County Extension Office

302A Byrne Street

Bay Minette, AL  36507

Telephone (251) 937-7176 or

928-0860/943-5061 ext. 2222

FAX (251) 937-7285

Amelia McGrew

Regional Extension Agent

Food Safety, Preparation & Preservation

September 21, 2010

Many questions are being asked about the safety of our Gulf Coast seafood since the Deep Horizon Oil Spill.  In light of this situation, I felt that it was best to share a recent news article that was prepared by my supervisor Dr. Jean Weese.  In this article, Dr. Weese explains the testing that is being done on our seafood samples and the cooperation among the state agencies to work together on this extreme issue of food safety.  The consensus is that all agencies feel very confident that our Gulf seafood is safe.

Recently, , an Alabama Cooperative Extension System food scientist and Auburn University professor of nutrition and food science, spent the week reviewing the seafood safety issue with representatives of several federal and state agencies entrusted with safeguarding these products. These agencies included the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Alabama Department of Public Health and the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.

Weese describes the interagency cooperation among these agencies as unprecedented in terms of food safety. They want to determine what affect the oil — and, for that matter, the 1.8 million gallons of chemical dispersants that have been applied to break up the spill — will have on Gulf Coast seafood.

Within the last few weeks, inspectors from these various agencies have closely inspected seafood samples looking for alarming traces of oil and dispersants.

What ultimately is discovered from this collaborative effort could have lasting implications for the Gulf Coast economy — not to mention the livelihoods of thousands of fishermen. The news is good, Weese says. If consumers accept the findings, she believes the Gulf Coast seafood industry is primed for recovery.

"The consensus among these agencies is that the waters that have been opened for fishing are safe," says Weese. "In fact, a lot of the waters were never closed in the first place because oil never turned up in those areas."

Weese says the intense coverage of the oil spill led many, if not most, people to the mistaken belief that the spill was considerably worse than it really was, affecting all of the Gulf rather than only parts of it.    "There are some 650 quadrillion gallons of water in the Gulf of Mexico," Weese says, adding that by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimates, some 217 million gallons of oil stemming from the Deep Water Horizon oil leak actually seeped into Gulf waters.   "Under the circumstances, it is reasonable to assume that a lot of seafood was never affected by the oil," Weese says.

The FDA, the NOAA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have tested more than 2,000 seafood samples for traces of polypropylene glycol, a chemical associated with the dispersants. So far only two samples have exceeded federally established limits.

"The bottom line is that seafood is safe and that you can return to eating Gulf of Mexico shrimp and other shellfish," she says.

The seafood retrieved for inspection is subjected to rigorous testing by an interagency team of inspectors who employ the well-known sniff test for traces of crude oil — a task for which they have been rigorously trained, Weese says.  Inspectors also taste the seafood and sniff for traces of chemical dispersant, known as Corexit. To reduce the risk of sensory fatigue, each team is assigned 8-hour shifts, five days a week. Any sample that has the faint whiff of crude oil or dispersant is immediately eliminated and the portion of the Gulf from which it was retrieved is closed.   Samples registered by the inspectors as clean are shipped to regional laboratories for additional chemical testing. Once samples pass the test, the fishery from which they came is reopened.

For additional information concerning this article, you may contact me with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System at 251-574-8445 or mcgreaj@aces.edu.

Email address: mcgreaj@aces.edu

Phone number: (251) 574-8445

The Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M and Auburn Universities) in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture is an equal opportunity educator and employer.