The Deputy Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Ato Cudjoe says the government will consider a total ban on pufferfish, a delicacy but poisonous and toxic fish enjoyed by Ghanaians.
This follows the consumption of the fish which resulted in the death of two people at Afram Plains in the Eastern Region on March 31 2019.
In an interview with Starr News, the Deputy Minister for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Ato Cudjoe said the government will consider a total ban on consumption of puffer fish
”With pufferfish once is gutted is good for consumption, but when the fish is caught in the net it gets frightened and pops up, once it does that the poison in it spreads to other parts of the fish. Even if it’s gutted the poison still remains in the fish. The next approach will be to stop the consumption of the fish, even though people say its a delicacy. The next stage is for us to consider a total ban on the consumption of the fish”.
He added that communities will be educated on Pufferfish, its consumption and effects to reduce death tolls in communities.
The District Chief Executive, DCE for Afram Plains Samuel Kena said he was shocked at the deaths considering the sensitization done in the past
”This news has just taken us by surprise, last year we had similar deaths from those who ate pufferfish. We did a lot of sensitization and education on the dangers in consuming the pufferfish and even went as far as visiting the market and seizing that type of fish from fishmongers who brought them for sale to the general public. So we were on the view that because of the extensive education that we undertook people will stop taking in the fish till we got to know two people had lost their lives through consumption of the fish”.
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