According to Australian media, a Sydney restaurant was recently complained by customers that tuna salad had food poisoning symptoms.

 

The New South Wales Food Bureau then tested the tuna canned food provided by the restaurant. Canned tuna fish met food safety standards, but salads sold in restaurants contained 20 times the safe level of histamine.

 

According to reports, the New South Wales State Food Bureau said mackerel poisoning or histamine poisoning usually occurs when eating tuna or sardines, because the presence of bacteria on specific species of fish produces the enzyme, which is used to convert histidine into histamine in fish.

 

A spokesman for the New South Wales State Food Agency said histamine per kilogram of fish was safe not to exceed 200 mg, and the tuna salad contained 3,950 mg of histamine per kilogram.

 

The FDA said in its FTA Food Solutions test for the John Bull tuna factory and Virginia importer that all the canned goods John Bull provided to Sydney's Cafe were safe and suitable for human consumption.

 

One industry insider said it was possible that cross-contamination of histamine resulted in increased histamine levels and microbial production after cans were opened.

 

Histamine poisoning is usually manifested as acrid, labial pain, skin rash, headache, dizziness, skin itching, and in severe cases also lead to nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. These symptoms usually occur 30 minutes after eating contaminated fish for 4 to 6 hours, rarely more than 24 hours, and can be treated with antihistamines.

 

A spokesman for Soul Origin Cafe said that after the incident, we changed suppliers and re-issued the NSW Food Safety Agency's food handling advice to all the stores.

 

In addition, the New South Wales Food Bureau also informed the Federal Ministry of agriculture about the matter. The Federal Department of Agriculture has suspended imports of I.S.A. Value Co. Limited tuna and mackerel products from Thailand, a maker of John Bull tuna. It requires that each batch of products must be temporarily kept in a place, after inspection and analysis by officials, in line with the requirements of the Australian food import program before entering the country.