Canned Tuna More Dangerous Than Previously Suspected
Groups call for efforts to protect Michigan citizens from mercury contamination

For Immediate Release: June 19, 2003

Contacts: Zoe Lipman , National Wildlife Federation 734-769-3351 x34 Dave Dempsey, Michigan Environmental Council 517-487-9539 Mary Beth Doyle, Ecology Center 734-761-3186 x108 Michael Bender, Mercury Policy Project 802-223-9000

Lansing, Michigan - The Michigan Environmental Council, the National Wildlife Federation, and the Ecology Center joined the Mercury Policy Project today in releasing report results of independent tests, showing that samples of "white" albacore tuna contained mercury at levels that could be dangerous to a developing fetus or a young child. The report, Can the Tuna: FDA's Failure to Protect Children from exposure to Mercury in Albacore "White" Canned Tuna, found an average of over 0.5 parts per million (ppm) mercury in white tuna samples tested, a level that would put most women and children over the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's exposure recommendations and pose risks of developmental deficits to young children.

"These results show that women and children consuming "white" canned tuna are being exposed to dangerously higher methylmercury levels than previously thought." Said Zoe Lipman of the National Wildlife Federation, "This is in addition to mercury Michigan residents may consume when they eat sportfish from our lakes and streams. This report underscores the importance of informing the public of the mercury threat and enacting comprehensive mercury pollution reduction programs to eliminate it."

Methylmercury-the organic form of mercury found in fish-is a potent neurotoxin that poses the greatest danger to the developing fetus, infants, and young children, but has also been linked to reproductive and cardiovascular problems in adults. According the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in 12 American women of childbearing age has mercury levels in their blood above the levels considered safe for the developing fetus. This means over 300,000 babies in the U.S - and more than 10,000 babies in Michigan - are born each year at risk of neurological damage due to mercury. Michigan has had a statewide fish consumption advisory in place since 1988 warning residents to limit consumption of many kinds of fish in all of Michigan's inland lakes due to mercury contamination. Women of childbearing age and children are also advised to avoid the following commercial fish due to mercury: swordfish, shark, tilefish and king mackerel.

"Canned tuna is one of the most consumed fish in America, and often the only fish that kids and pregnant women eat," said Mary Beth Doyle of the Ecology Center. "Therefore, while fish can be an important part of a healthy diet, the Michigan Department of Community Health should add albacore "white" tuna to the list of commercial fish women of childbearing years and children should avoid."

"After living with mercury fish advisories for over three decades in Michigan, many anglers throw big perch, bass and walleye back - who would have thought there was just as much mercury in a tuna fish sandwich," Lipman added. "Individuals and communities throughout Michigan and the nation depend on fish and fishing as an important part of their diet and culture. Its time we took action at a state and national level to solve this problem."

"While fish consumption advisories are essential to protect peoples health, they are not a solution," said Dave Dempsey of the Michigan Environmental Council, "The only way to solve the mercury problem is to eliminate mercury air pollution - which is the root source of mercury contamination in fish. Fortunately, we know how to do this, and these steps are feasible and affordable."

Governor Granholm has endorsed a state mercury phaseout by 2020, and the DEQ has recently launched an internal workgroup tasked with identifying the key steps forward on mercury for the state.

"Michigan needs to ensure deep mercury emissions reductions from major industrial sources like the state's coal-fired power plants," Dempsey continued. "Protective federal controls on mercury emissions under the Clean Air Act are also critical to cleaning up mercury pollution in the state and in the nation."

Doyle added, "Michigan should also follow the lead of Washington State and Maine, and prohibit the sale of mercury-containing blood pressure devices and other products containing mercury. Not only is mercury damaging to public health, but also to wildlife, and to the nation's multi-billion dollar commercial and recreational fishing industries. Michigan has an opportunity to lead the nation in addressing this potent threat to public health, the environment, and the economy."

Canned tuna is consumed in 90 percent of American households and accounts for 25-35 percent of all fish consumption in the U.S. Children eat more than twice as much tuna as any other fish, and canned tuna is the most frequently consumed fish among women of child bearing age. White albacore canned tuna accounts for approximately one-third of all tuna sold in the U.S.

How much fish can a person eat before exceeding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) recommended limit, called a reference dose (RfD)? That depends on body weight and mercury content of the fish. For example:
… If a woman of childbearing age with a typical weight of 132 lbs eats 12 ounces
of canned tuna per week (with 0.5 ppm mercury), the limit advised by FDA, she will be exposed to 4 times the EPA's RfD standard.
… An 88 pound child consuming weekly one 6 ounce can of tuna with a 0.5 ppm mercury concentration would be exposed to 3 times the EPA's RfD standard.
… A 22 pound toddler would have an intake over 4 times the EPA RfD standard by eating only 2 ounces per week.

These concerns, however, pale in comparison to the risks of prenatal mercury exposure; in utero fetuses are at severe risk of neurological impairment from methylmercury passing through the placental barrier as a result of maternal fish consumption. Nevertheless, according to the Food and Drug Administration, as many as 50 percent of women have little or no knowledge of mercury exposure risks identified with eating fish.

"Mercury is one of the most toxic heavy metals that can damage the infant brain - from fetal life into childhood, said Dr. William Weil, MSU Professor Emeritus, and retired pediatrician. Mercury air pollution from coal fired power plants and other sources is carried by rain into water bodies, where it is converted into methyl mercury - the form of mercury which accumulates in the food chain. "Methyl mercury is the form that does the damage to the fetus and young child, " Weil continued.

Cans of Starkist, Bumblebee, and Chicken of the Sea tuna were collected from Safeway, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Shaw's, and other supermarkets around the country and sent to Landmark Laboratory in Michigan. Over six-percent of white tuna samples contained mercury at or above FDA's outdated and unprotective action level for mercury of 1 part-per-million. On average, white tuna proved to have levels of mercury over four-times higher than light tuna.

"These tests confirm what FDA has known for over a decade about higher mercury levels in white tuna," said Michael Bender of the Mercury Policy Project. "FDA's own scientists have stated in focus groups that sensitive populations need to be warned about the risks of consuming tuna. It's time for FDA to finally issue a canned tuna advisory."

The tuna industry regularly tests mercury levels in canned tuna but does not make this data publicly available. Yet according to a spokesperson from the tuna industry, "extensive research" found that four percent of the tuna tested reached or exceeded the FDA's action level of 1 ppm. A $1 billion industry, the U.S. tuna industry estimates that warning people about the risks of mercury exposure in canned tuna could lead to a nearly 25 percent drop in sales.

"FDA is acting more like a trade association than a public health agency," said Bender. "The agency should stop protecting the fishing industry and start protecting the public from toxic tuna."

In the face of such FDA inaction, states and others are attempting to fill the void by embracing approaches that are more restrictive than the FDA's action level. Eleven states have issued advisories warning women and children to limit canned tuna consumption, and several states warn that the "white" canned tuna contains higher mercury levels than "light" tuna.

Most mercury pollution comes from the burning of fossil fuels in the coal-fired power plants, disposal of mercury-containing products in incinerators and landfills, mineral mining operations, industrial processes like chlorine production, and releases from dental offices. Mercury levels in the environment have increased 3-5 fold in the past century as a result of human activities and are reaching threshold levels that threaten human health and environmental security, as well as the future of the global fishing industry. Since 1996, fish has surpassed beef and poultry as the main common source of protein for billions of people in the world.

To view the report, go to: http://www.mercurypolicy.org

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