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oysters

Is a “Harmonic Convergence” Responsible for Saving Oysters in California?

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A lifelong Marin County resident, Bob La Belle, thinks nothing short of a “harmonic convergence” may be responsible for saving that Drakes Bay oyster business that former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar tried to shut down. It seems that since the oyster farm located at the Point Reyes National Seashore won an emergency injunction allowing it… Continue Reading

California Warns of Health Risk in Marin County Shellfish

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California health officials are warning consumers not to eat mussels, clams or scallops from Marin County because they may contain dangerous levels of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins. The California Department of Health issued a health advisory Wednesday after mussels harvested from Marin County were found to contain high levels of PSP toxins, but the… Continue Reading

Letter From The Editor: Oysters

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Ken Salazar, our Secretary of the Interior with an anger management problem, is nearing the Obama Administration’s exit doors. He will likely be replaced by any one of a half dozen former senators and governors from the West. Salazar, a former Colorado attorney general and U.S. Senator, went and got himself recorded threatening a local… Continue Reading

Vibrio in Oysters Sickened 8 in MA This Year

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At least eight people have fallen ill with Vibrio parahaemolyticus harvested from Massachusetts waters this year, the state’s health department has reported to the Cape Cod Times. Massachusetts oysters were never associated with Vibrio contamination until last year, when two people fell ill from oysters harvested in waters traditionally believed to be too cold for… Continue Reading

CA Warns Consumers to Not Eat Oysters from Drakes Bay Oyster Co.

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California Department of Public Health (CDPH) director Dr. Ron Chapman warned consumers on Saturday to not eat shucked and in-shell raw oysters from Drakes Bay Oyster Company because they may be contaminated with Vibrio parahaemolyticus, a bacterium that can cause serious illness. To date, three illnesses in California have been linked to the products, according… Continue Reading

FDA Explains Ban on Korean Shellfish

Korean shellfish imports have been blocked by the U.S. since May 1 because Korean waters may have been polluted with human fecal waste, the U.S. Food and Drug Admnistration (FDA) said on Friday. Oysters, clams, mussels and scallops harvested in Korea have the potential to be contaminated with norovirus, the agency said. The Washington State Department of… Continue Reading

FDA Halts Shellfish Imports from Korea

The Food and Drug Administration has stopped the shipment of fresh and frozen oysters, clams, mussels and scallops from Korea to the U.S. because many of these molluscan shellfish may be contaminated, according to a news release from the Washington State Department of Health. The ban does not include canned shellfish. The action comes with… Continue Reading

Oysters At New Orleans Restaurant Cause Norovirus

Fourteen people became ill with norovirus after eating Gulf oysters at a New Orleans area restaurant on April 28 and 29, the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals (DHH) announced Tuesday. As a result, DHH has closed a key harvesting area on the Gulf coast west of the Mississippi River and recalled oysters harvested from… Continue Reading

Scientist Defends Research on Heavy Metals in Oysters

In the two years since the BP oil spill, most scientific research on its effects falls into one of two categories — seafood safety or environmental damage. Now there are signs science is moving beyond those preliminary assessments to career-defining work that the some researchers don’t want to see misused by others. That can be… Continue Reading

Magazine Cautions Against 10 ‘Dirtiest’ Foods

The popular Men’s Health magazine is the latest to weigh in with a list of dangerous foods, along with information on how to increase their safety if you are still inclined to eat them. The Men’s Health list includes the 10 most often contaminated foods that are likely to be popular with its readers. The… Continue Reading