Is it safe to eat Basa fish?
While
surfing the net, sometimes I get really scared. Because I had read some
negative comments about Basa fish, I wanted to learn more about the
subject. Of course I found a horrible story with the title: Cause of
Death: Consumption of Basa fish (http://talk.onevietnam.org/cause-of-death-consumption-of-basa-fish/).
The author Kimberly Truong posted it in 2010 vaguely describing mercury
poisoning by basa fish – without any reference to actual happenings.
The headline screams for attention but the story is devoid of facts. It
seems to be written to put the fear of god into mothers who want to feed
their children affordable seafood.
Fact is that basa fish, Pangasius hypophthalmus and Pangasius bocourti, also known as Panga, Freshwater fillets, Vietnamese River Cobbler, Gray Sole and Pacific Dory, is one of the cheapest fishes available worldwide. Only small fishes like mackerels or anchovies cost less. Basa fish feed on plants and grow very fast.
For many years now, basa fish is one of the success stories of modern Vietnam. It started in 1960 under the supervision of the government. Aquaculture, producing mostly tiger prawns and basa fish, is now the third largest industry in Vietnam. This fresh water fish is farmed in the Mekong river system and in some places in Thailand.
As you can see from the graphic provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, basa production has increased a lot in recent years. The main reason is the overfishing of the oceans. If we all want to eat fish, basa is offering a solution.
Basa fish is high in protein, low in fat and provides some omega 3 fatty acids, the precious substances that keep our hearts healthy and our brains working well.
The question remains however: How healthy is this kind of fish? According to the website of the Australian seafood importers, the Mekong http://www.seafoodimporters.com.au/news.item.php?pid=62 is one of the cleanest of the world’s large rivers – not one of the most polluted like the opponents of basa fish claim. To make female fishes spawn in captivity, they need a hormone injection.
In 2006, the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service tested 100 samples of imported basa fish for chemical residues. Some showed residue of one or more chemicals. From all the sources I have read I find the following one the most informative: ‘Basa, from myth to reality, the story of a scapegoat fish’ by Margot Grosman. http://www.heliozoa.com/wfwsum/margauxgrosman/ass4/template_6/basa%20fish%20-%20investigation.pdf
I think everybody has to form his or her opinion when it comes to basa fish. Fact is our oceans are overfished. Fact is also our oceans are polluted. You can get a serious dose of heavy metals from wild fish as well. Maybe there are less hormones and antibiotics in wild fish, but who knows?
As long as you don’t get the fish you eat tested by a laboratory, you don’t know how much it is contaminated. Just remember that Fukushima in Japan is still leaking radioactive water into the ocean, the third year now.
So far, I have great experiences with basa fish. I prefer to make ceviche with this fish because it is hygienically packed – what I cannot say about the fish here in the market. I have eaten it many times and never felt sick afterwards.
If you want to know more about fish and the state of our oceans, I can recommend the website of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch.http://www.seafoodwatch.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/issues/wildseafood.aspx
Fact is that basa fish, Pangasius hypophthalmus and Pangasius bocourti, also known as Panga, Freshwater fillets, Vietnamese River Cobbler, Gray Sole and Pacific Dory, is one of the cheapest fishes available worldwide. Only small fishes like mackerels or anchovies cost less. Basa fish feed on plants and grow very fast.
For many years now, basa fish is one of the success stories of modern Vietnam. It started in 1960 under the supervision of the government. Aquaculture, producing mostly tiger prawns and basa fish, is now the third largest industry in Vietnam. This fresh water fish is farmed in the Mekong river system and in some places in Thailand.
As you can see from the graphic provided by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, basa production has increased a lot in recent years. The main reason is the overfishing of the oceans. If we all want to eat fish, basa is offering a solution.
Basa fish is high in protein, low in fat and provides some omega 3 fatty acids, the precious substances that keep our hearts healthy and our brains working well.
The question remains however: How healthy is this kind of fish? According to the website of the Australian seafood importers, the Mekong http://www.seafoodimporters.com.au/news.item.php?pid=62 is one of the cleanest of the world’s large rivers – not one of the most polluted like the opponents of basa fish claim. To make female fishes spawn in captivity, they need a hormone injection.
In 2006, the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service tested 100 samples of imported basa fish for chemical residues. Some showed residue of one or more chemicals. From all the sources I have read I find the following one the most informative: ‘Basa, from myth to reality, the story of a scapegoat fish’ by Margot Grosman. http://www.heliozoa.com/wfwsum/margauxgrosman/ass4/template_6/basa%20fish%20-%20investigation.pdf
I think everybody has to form his or her opinion when it comes to basa fish. Fact is our oceans are overfished. Fact is also our oceans are polluted. You can get a serious dose of heavy metals from wild fish as well. Maybe there are less hormones and antibiotics in wild fish, but who knows?
As long as you don’t get the fish you eat tested by a laboratory, you don’t know how much it is contaminated. Just remember that Fukushima in Japan is still leaking radioactive water into the ocean, the third year now.
So far, I have great experiences with basa fish. I prefer to make ceviche with this fish because it is hygienically packed – what I cannot say about the fish here in the market. I have eaten it many times and never felt sick afterwards.
If you want to know more about fish and the state of our oceans, I can recommend the website of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch.http://www.seafoodwatch.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/issues/wildseafood.aspx
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