An alarming study has revealed that toxic metals may be lurking in cans of canned tuna sold in Britain.
Tests on almost 150 cans purchased in France, Italy, Spain, Germany and Britain found all were ‘contaminated with mercury’.
Exposure to the metal can stunt brain development, cause life-threatening lung damage and has been linked to certain cancers.
Researchers claimed the study showed the product posed ‘a huge risk to public health’ and urged governments to take ‘urgent’ action.
Karine Jacquemart, CEO of consumer rights organization Foodwatch France – one of the two groups behind the report, said: ‘What we end up with on our plate is a huge public health risk that is not being taken seriously.
‘We will not give up until we have a more protective European standard.’
Under current EU and UK legislation, the limit for mercury in tuna is 1 mg/kg and 0.3 mg/kg for other fish such as cod.
Foodwatch and Paris-based NGO Bloom found that all 148 cans tested contained mercury – about 57 percent of which exceeded the limit of 0.3 mg/kg of mercury.
Tests on almost 150 cans bought in France, Italy, Spain, Germany and Britain found they were all ‘contaminated with mercury’
Exposure to the metal can stunt brain development, cause life-threatening lung damage and has been linked to certain cancers
Researchers claimed the study showed the product was ‘a huge risk to public health’ and urged governments to take ‘urgent’ action
One can bought at a Carrefour City store in Paris had a record level of 3.9 mg/kg, the report said – 13 times the limit of 0.3 mg/kg.
Bloom and Foodwatch urged European countries to ‘activate a safeguard clause’ to prevent the sale and promotion of products above 0.3 mg/kg.
They also called on governments to remove ‘all products’ containing tuna from school canteens, nurseries, maternity wards, hospitals and care homes.
The average European consumes more than 2.8 kilos of tuna per year, or about 25 cans.
About four-fifths of the mercury released into the atmosphere from natural and human causes, such as burning coal, ends up in the ocean, where some is converted by small organisms into a toxic compound known as methylmercury.
This methylmercury works its way up the food chain and accumulates in high concentrations in top predators.
Because tuna – and other predators or longer-lived species such as sharks or swordfish – are higher on the food chain, they eat smaller fish and accumulate more mercury over time.
Exposure to methylmercury can damage the kidneys and nervous system, cause vision problems and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), pregnant women and children are particularly vulnerable to high levels of methylmercury.
Research has shown that some forms of mercury at very high doses have caused the development of several types of tumors in rats and mice.
To date, there is no human data linking mercury exposure to cancer, but available data is limited.