New Safety Guidelines for Eating Fish from Michigan
WXYZ posted new safety guidelines for eating fish caught in Michigan. I knew that no one is supposed to eat catfish or carp from in or around the Detroit River, but I didn’t know that all other fish was to be limited to one meal per MONTH? That’s been a rule for 20 years.
The new rules state that kids under 15 or child bearing women should never eat any small mouth bass or walleye over 18 inches. And do not eat carp, catfish, or white bass from the Saginaw Bay and River and Tittabawassee River.
I went to the Fish Advisory website at michigan.gov and read about how lake fish should be cooked:
Cut off all the fat.
Remove or poke holes in the fish’s skin before cooking. This will help the fat and chemicals to drain off the fish.
Bake, broil, or grill the fish on a rack. Throw away the drippings.
Do not eat the guts, head, skin, bones, or dark fatty areas.
Do not re-use the oil that was used to deep or pan fry the fish.
Sorry, but these directions remind me of a label on a bottle of pesticide where it says to use gloves, do not get on skin, in eyes, or mouth, wash everything thoroughly, do not use sprayer for anything else, etc.
The most important thing I did read was: Mercury stays in the filet of the fish and cannot be cut or cooked away. Use the MDCH guides to choose fish that are low in mercury.
After reading this all I could think of is my husband’s friend, an avid fisherman, who tossed mercury off as something that can just be cut away. I didn’t think so, but you can’t talk to a fisherman. This one happens to be single, so at least he’s not taking it home to the kids.
http://www.wxyz.com/alnews/local/story.aspx?content_id=7d15f21b-a073-4604-afc5-4d09431d1952
http://www.michigan.gov/documents/FishAdvisory03_67354_7.pdf