Tests confirm no formalin in Chennai fish: Fisheries minister

Fisheries minister D Jayakumar on Friday refuted reports that fish sold in Chennai contain the cancer-causing chemical formalin.

The minister told reporters that tests by Tamil Nadu Fisheries University and the food safety department had ruled out the presence of formalin — illegally used as a preservative — in fish samples collected at random from landing centres, fish markets and harbours in Chennai and surrounding areas.

Jayakumar was attempting to counter a public scare over accounts of fish laced with the chemical showing up in markets in Chennai and elsewhere in the state.

“People can test samples in private institutes if they are not confident of the tests by officials,” he said, adding that the government was taking measures to ensure that only chemical-free fish is available for sale in the state.

“Middlemen transporting fish from neighbouring states may have engaged in such practices,” the minister said in response to a question on traces of formalin in samples from Chintadripet. State food safety officials have been conducting tests of fish samples over the past fortnight on an alert from Kerala on seizure of a consignment of formalin-laced fish.

Jayakumar said the use of illegal preservatives like formalin would attract stern action. Noting that the formalin scare had caused fish sales to plunge, directly affecting fishermen, he appealed to people not to allow rumours to sway them. “Why would fishermen want to risk their livelihood by adopting such practices?” he said.

“Fishermen have mechanized boats with cold storage facilities to keep fish fresh for 10 to 15 days and transporters use refrigerated trucks,” he said. “There is no need to use formalin because the demand for fish is high.”

Mortuaries use formalin, derived from formaldehyde, to preserve bodies. Fish wholesalers sometimes illegally use it as a preservative, especially while transporting it to other states.

Formalin is commonly used to preserve bodies and prevent its decay in. Fish traders sometimes illegally use it as a preservative.

Officials of the food safety and fisheries departments had earlier in the week conducted checks in fish markets in Kasimedu, Chintadripet and Saidapet. None of 24 samples they tested with rapid-detection kits were chemically contaminated.