Tuna, the most consumed fish in Europe, is also one of the fish species most contaminated with mercury. Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the ten most concerning chemicals for health, alongside asbestos and lead.
Once ingested, mercury (and especially methylmercury, the form encountered in fish) is difficult to remove from the body and regular consumption of this toxin, even in low doses, can have harmful long-term effects on human health. Many studies have documented the damages caused by methylmercury not only to the neurological, cognitive and motor systems of fetuses, but also to the neuromotor, cardiovascular, immune, renal and reproductive systems of children and adults exposed to low levels.
The problem? The norms do not protect our health.
Established in 1993 by the European commission, the maximum limits thresholds for mercury in fish were fixed so as not to hinder the fish market, without consideration for health. This is the result of intense lobbying efforts from the industry, well-aware that its products are contaminated with mercury. As early as 1985, tuna industry representatives infiltrated international and European institutions to influence the adoption of sanitary regulations and protect their economic activities.
As a result, the EU set the tuna thresholds at more than three times higher than those for some other species like cod or herring, despite there being no valid health justification.
Our battle? Change the norm so that it protects our health
Today, these absurd regulations are still in effect, and the doubt-manufacturing strategy implemented by the tuna industry continues, creating a smokescreen around the contamination of tuna with mercury.
It is unfair that public health is compromised for the benefit of a few. BLOOM believes the responsibility for this contamination should not fall on consumers, but on those who produce and market these products: industry players. BLOOM aims to break the silence surrounding the influence of tuna lobbies and to reform current regulations towards a more protective limit for mercury in tuna. We are putting pressure on European and national institutions as well as on the private sector.
Dominating market players, the retailers, should no longer ignore the health risks associated with the consumption of tuna products that contain mercury, and protect their consumers.
BLOOM is leading a European campaign to put an end to this public health scandal.
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