Ought Six
02-07-2005, 12:49 AM
'Shrimp Dip' Remains in Use Despite Deaths (http://www.newsday.com/news/health/wire/sns-ap-shrimp-dip,0,6734383.story?coll=sns-ap-health-headlines)
Associated Press, via Newsday
February 6, 2005
BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- Shrimpers are still using a preservative known as "shrimp dip" despite reports of deaths and injuries because they lack a cost-effective alternative, a newspaper reported Sunday.
Shrimpers use the dip, called sodium metabisulfite, to prevent black spots from forming on the shell and legs of shrimp harvested at sea.
As many as 400 freezer boats in the Gulf of Mexico use the preservative, Harley Londrie of Zimco Marine told The Brownsville Herald. Londrie, who sells sodium metabisulfite to local distributors, said the chemical is safe if used properly.
The dip was blamed for 11 deaths and 32 injuries between 1970 and 1993, U.S. Coast Guard records show.
A study by the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston says the chemical can react under the proper conditions with water and acids from the shrimp to produce deadly clouds of sulfur dioxide.
A shrimp boat crew member suffered permanent physical and brain damage in July 2003 due to asphyxiation caused by sulfur dioxide, his family members claim. Angel Romero Jr., of Port Isabel, has made modest improvements but remains paralyzed, said his attorney, Ray Marchan.
The family sued the shrimp boat's owners and several chemical companies, settling in the case in January for an undisclosed sum.
Shrimpers say they would welcome an affordable alternative to sodium metabisulfite but are forced to continue using it to meet the market's demand for attractive, high-quality shrimp.
Some shrimpers use another preservative named Everfresh, but others say it's too expensive and did not work well on freezer boats. Sodium metabisulfite sells for about $30 per 50-pound bag. A box of 16 packets of Everfresh, weighing just more than seven pounds, sells for $160.
Associated Press, via Newsday
February 6, 2005
BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- Shrimpers are still using a preservative known as "shrimp dip" despite reports of deaths and injuries because they lack a cost-effective alternative, a newspaper reported Sunday.
Shrimpers use the dip, called sodium metabisulfite, to prevent black spots from forming on the shell and legs of shrimp harvested at sea.
As many as 400 freezer boats in the Gulf of Mexico use the preservative, Harley Londrie of Zimco Marine told The Brownsville Herald. Londrie, who sells sodium metabisulfite to local distributors, said the chemical is safe if used properly.
The dip was blamed for 11 deaths and 32 injuries between 1970 and 1993, U.S. Coast Guard records show.
A study by the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston says the chemical can react under the proper conditions with water and acids from the shrimp to produce deadly clouds of sulfur dioxide.
A shrimp boat crew member suffered permanent physical and brain damage in July 2003 due to asphyxiation caused by sulfur dioxide, his family members claim. Angel Romero Jr., of Port Isabel, has made modest improvements but remains paralyzed, said his attorney, Ray Marchan.
The family sued the shrimp boat's owners and several chemical companies, settling in the case in January for an undisclosed sum.
Shrimpers say they would welcome an affordable alternative to sodium metabisulfite but are forced to continue using it to meet the market's demand for attractive, high-quality shrimp.
Some shrimpers use another preservative named Everfresh, but others say it's too expensive and did not work well on freezer boats. Sodium metabisulfite sells for about $30 per 50-pound bag. A box of 16 packets of Everfresh, weighing just more than seven pounds, sells for $160.