Should I avoid seafood because of mercury, other heavy metals PFAs?Updated 8 days ago

Definitely not! Mercury is a naturally occurring element that finds its way into all living things in small quantities. There has been unwarranted concern around mercury in seafood. The general consensus is that the benefits of eating seafood far outweigh the risks. The vast majority of popular seafood is low in mercury. For most groups of people, mercury in seafood is not a concern, and for select groups, there are ways to manage the risk.

Women who are pregnant or may become pregnant, as well as breastfeeding mothers and parents and caregivers feeding children 2 years and older, can make informed choices when it comes to fish that are nutritious and safe to eat by following FDA published guidance. In general, they recommend that these groups eat 8-12oz of a variety of seafood each week due to its fantastic health benefits and the wide selection of low-mercury options. Check out the link to see a list of many of those low mercury options and some where consumption should be limited or avoided for those groups. When consuming seafood caught by friends and family in local waters, it is best to check local advisories.

Similar to mercury, the FDA's guidance in regard to PFAs and heavy metals is that the benefit of seafood far outweighs any potential risk, with the exception of canned clams from China, which we do not offer. More information can be found here. For wild fish, commercial fishing is not allowed in areas that test for high concentrations of heavy metals or a variety of other contaminants, and our aquaculture partners follow regulations and internal practices to ensure the products do not contain meaningful concentrations of contaminants.