DV-10-10 Preliminary comparison of mercury concentrations in wild and farm-raised shrimp

Sarah Nelson
Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Environmental & Watershed Research
5710 Norman Smith Hall
Orono, ME 04469
207.581.3454

Shrimp is the most popular seafood in the United States. EPA and FDA seafood consumption advisories suggest that shrimp is a low-mercury food, however this information is based on data that represent only a few samples analyzed in the 1990s, and for methylmercury only. Further, existing data do not specify shrimp species or provenance. This pilot project analyzed mercury in northern shrimp (Pandalus borealis) landed in Maine and other shrimp available to Maine consumers, such as wild-caught American shrimp and farm-raised tiger shrimp from Asia. The resulting data confirmed that Maine shrimp are in fact low in mercury and are a safe, healthy choice for seafood consumers.

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