Basa fresh water fish fillets??? Not quite, More like Mekong river Sewer dwellers.

Every year Australians eat around 13 kilograms of fish per person. And if health authorities had their way, we'd be eating even more. But in the face of that increasing demand, the local fishing industry is facing declining stocks and fewer licences, meaning we have to get used to having less home grown fish. Consequently, in recent years, the relatively cheap Vietnamese or Mekong catfish has made huge inroads into our market. Not that most consumers would know. Lax naming laws mean the imported fish is often sold under more familiar, local sounding names. Of particular concern is the fact that some of this fish has been found to contain traces of a suspected carcinogen. The same problems have occurred in and around Sydney Australia and bans were imposed on recreational and commercial fishing over a year ago. yet the govt is allowing this suspect fish to be imported with impunity because of its weak inspection guidelines

Australians love their seafood and are being urged to eat more for health reasons. Increasingly it comes from overseas, so what exactly are we eating?
Over the past few years, there's been an influx of this boneless, skinless lightly flavoured fillet. Generally it is called basa.
It has penetrated the market quite drastically and most of the fish and chip shops are using it in place of the more expensive fish.
What most Australians probably don't know is it's a Vietnamese catfish, farmed in the waters of the Mekong Delta.
Might as well be called Tongan terakihi for all I care but it should be known as Vietnamese catfish.
At the moment in Australia there are laws saying what a fish must be called. For example, this piece from a Coles supermarket came from a batch simply labeled "fresh water fillets" although basa appeared on the price tag. Coles said that was an exception to store policy, which is to label it at the deli counter as both imported and basa. Elsewhere the fish is sometimes called freshwater dory or more controversially pacific dory or pacific roughie.
This basa fillet is neither from the Pacific or is it a dory so that name is purely a promotional name and very deceptive to the public.
The reason this naming issue is so crucial is that if consumers knew it came from the Mekong Delta they might think twice about eating it.

The Mekong River is a known SEWER. The fishing industry is not that big an industry worldwide. We know what sort of waters people are taking fish out of.
The concerns I have with basa as a fish is basically the innuendos about its quality and the safety assurance that the consumer has with it.
The committee that's currently deciding on the official names for all fish sold here are saying the naming issues are real, but the health concerns are a beat up.
A strong supporter of the local industry importing selectively for his business said he doesn't worry about the basa's living conditions. He probably doesn't eat the shit laden fish
Internationally, there's also been concern that traces of a chemical called malachite green have been found in basa. It's a green textile dye approved in pet shops for aquarium fish, but using it on aqua culture fish is illegal here, in the US, the UK, China and many other countries. It's been used as a fungicide but it's suspected of causing cancer and leaves behind a harmful residue called leuchomalachite.

It's a safety issue in Europe, safety issue in the US. Why not in Australia.

The organisation governing food standards says malachite green is not being tested because of safety concerns, but because no one has applied to approve the chemical for use, maximum residue levels have not been set, hence it is illegal. Supporters of basa argue the proven health benefits of eating fish would far outweigh any suspected harm of levels of malachite green found so far. Australian authorities started testing for the chemical in September last year. Five per cent of all farmed fish imports is only tested on a random basis. Well, 5 per cent is a very small figure. It's a very small figure, indeed, when you consider the tonnage that's involved.
Australia's testing was prompted by what was found in 60 fish samples a few months ago. Ten tested positive for leuchomalachite and in some cases malachite green. The food standards body says that very small levels of the chemicals did not present a public health concern. The seven foreign positive tests were all basa

Last October, 10 days after testing began. Two of the three samples showed leuchomalachite green. One sample showed 10 times the detectable amount. The lab involved confirmed the document was from one of its reports, but wouldn't say who commissioned the tests. This argument about basa comes as the Australian fishing industry feels the pinch. Australia produces relatively low volumes of high-quality fish and the costs of being clean and green make it vulnerable to large quantities of cheap imports like basa.
As far as the naming issues go, it's thought officially enforceable titles should be standardised early next year. Consumers might then be able to separate shitfish and sewer born catfish from the roughies. basa Freshwater fish my arse.
These fish are river cleaners, living in waters that are virtual sewers if you are offered this for your next meal tell them where to stuff it, it will feel at home.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Zac And I go fishing up the hawkesbury river and most times fish are caught near the railway bridge are cat fish and they get chucked back or cut up for bait. real horrid they are.
Anonymous said…
Zeta-Jones hair do.

July 09, 2007 12:00am

Plain old water wasn't good enough for Cleopatra, who preferred to bathe in asses' milk. Catherine Zeta-Jones, it would seem, has a similar attitude to shampoo and conditioner.

While most of us have to make do with a handful of fragrant soapy foam, the Welsh actress smears on truffles and caviar, according to The Daily Mail.

At $470 a time, just for the fish eggs, looking good does not come cheap.

But she credits the gourmet delights for giving her long brown tresses an unbeatable shine.

The Beluga caviar is apparently flown in from Iran five days ahead of her treatments at a beauty salon in South Kensington.

"Catherine discovered the caviar treatment last summer and was astounded by the difference it made to her hair," said a source.

"She has an incredibly rich and vibrant natural hair colour but the creamy, almost oily nature of caviar really brings this out, making the colour even richer and making it so much more glossy.

"The eggs are packed with omega-3 fatty acids necessary for the formation of structural proteins. It is these proteins that repair dry and damaged hair and smooth over any split ends."

The two-hour pampering treatment at the celebrity salon, Hari's, also includes a complimentary glass of champagne and caviar canapes to nibble on.

Miss Zeta-Jones's hair is washed with a truffle-based shampoo, then smeared with the caviar, which is combed through and left to set.

The sturgeon roe are liquidised prior to use, which is said to remove any odour.

Unlike many fad treatments, caviar is actually proven to work as a conditioning therapy.

The essential fatty acids it contains produce collagen and keratin, two proteins vital for the appearance of sleek hair.

Miss Zeta-Jones obviously feels the investment is worth it to keep one of her most celebrated assets in shape.

In 2005, the former Darling Buds Of May star was voted the celebrity with the "best dressed" hair in a nationwide survey by Sunsilk and London's City University.

It is not known what her husband, Michael Douglas, thinks of the beauty regime, but he is known to be partial to fish roe in its more traditional presentation.

At the couple's wedding seven years ago he ordered $28,000 worth of Beluga caviar to be served at the wedding reception.

Have Your Say
Latest Comments:

What a great waste of money. She is known for her natural beauty and the ability to actually ACT. She is a great actress, not a great body or body of hair. I believe this is another case how of millionaires do not appreciate the financial position they are in.
Posted by: Katie of Windsor 11:39am today

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Vest said…
The home of the sturgeon and Caviar the Caspian sea - final depository of the Danube's garbage; well known for its miscellaneous toxins, Enjoy your Caviar.
In my opinion it tastes revolting, like the Asian Durian has the most ghastly smell.

Those Mekong River sewer fish plus that stinking caviar could be put to better use as a fertiliser.
Keshi said…
I love fish...but I prefer deep sea fish...

btw belated bday wishes to ur beautiful lady!

Keshi.
Anonymous said…
Hey vesty, my uncle in the fish business says some of the best fish imported is from New Zealand called hoki and its cheap like the best aus fish, btw you really are funny at times and wotsa DURIAN.
Anonymous said…
It's a safety issue in Europe, safety issue in the US. Why not in Australia

its pollytics (and the vote bank)
and its business

u gotta buy cheap
and sell expensive

thats how India and China are outsourcing destinations for the western world

if your competitor uses cheap raw material and labor from India and China

u have to do likewise or perish
Jim said…
recently a company in US has started marketing China- free labelled products

but only a few discriminitaing buyers will buy

if it is China- free
it will be expensive
Jim said…
Company to label health foods ‘China-free’ - More Health News ...It’s bound to go down the wrong way in Beijing: A US health food company will label its products ”China-Free” to ease concerns about contamination.
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19637875/ - 50k - Cached - Similar pages
Anonymous said…
SHUCKS

i heard what u said to Keshi
i hope ROSEMARY didnt
Vest said…
Jim & Anon; We in Australia have retail goods marked with the Australian flag symbol to simply to coerce us into buying what could be an inferior product; although made in Australia, and occasionally by a foreign competitor, where the money we pay goes overseas.

Keshi: Rosemary Say's "Thank You".

Frog: Thanks for the info.

Kate: wotsa a durian.
A Durian is an Asian tropical fruit. The Durian is a mid green colour, its size about 60 cm in circumference weighs around 1.5 kilos and is covered with fleshy spikes. Apparently the interior fruit is very tasty to those who are acclimatised ? to it from childhood, Malays in particular love it, there is a tree bearing this fruit at no 1 larong 1 jalan Storey in Johore Bahru where my wife and family lived years ago, our bedroom window opened on to it. one of these large fruits smashed onto the ground creating an awful nauseating stink.
A local fable in Singapore was, that, a starving WW2 prisoner of war; committed suicide rather than eat it.
Anonymous said…
q0cuKT The best blog you have!
Anonymous said…
qOahx8 write more, thanks.
Ash said…
You should source your article... otherwise it is outright plagiarism.

This article is copied straight from The 7:30 Report on ABC

Link to original's transcript:
http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2005/s1526227.htm
Anonymous said…
This guy is just a self-important tool.

"insane heavy metal garbage?"

You know, you don't have to like all music or even all forms of music, but to insult an entire genre you've probably never even listened to is just plain rude and close-minded.

I hope this guy sits on a bowling pin, maybe it would loosen him up a little.
Vest said…
Anonymous: I have had the misfortune to have been bombarded with heavy metal,. I would imagine you have already swallowed a bowling ball due to the enormity of your poisonous mouth. In your case shithead; being aonymous and without markings, you must be a cheap and nasty version of what can be described as sub human.
Oh BTW you are a wanker too.
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Anonymous said…
Channel 7's Today Tonight ran two programs depicting appalling growing conditions for aquaculture fish in Vietnam. The footage showed small 'cottage industry' farms growing fish for local consumption, focussing on polluted waterways and drains in urban areas. This is NOT where Basa, sold in Australia, is grown.

Although the reporter stated "this is where your fish and chips comes from", the footage did not represent the region's ultra-modern, multi-billion dollar Basa export industry. Even Food Standards Australia New Zealand described the information in the Today Tonight reports as "unreliable". The ABC's Media Watch has a special section on its website dedicated to misleading reports by the same Today Tonight reporter, titled The 'Sluggo' Files. It's worth a look!
Unknown said…
My opinion,the whole basa fish story is a beat up by the crying australian fish industry.Crying because you the aussie sucker are not buying their extremly overprices local product.
Same with Prawns,local,what a con.And the suckers will all be out buying them next week for Xmas 2015.Instead go but Scallops,Chinese,from $19 kilo frozen free flow,or smoked salmon chilled,Norwegian from $29 a kilo.No shelling no waste,totally all eatable.
Vest said…
Nomad man.I have travelled to 78 different countries in my 89 years, I have lived in England, Srilanka, Hongkong, Malaya & Singapore and briefly in Vietnam and now in the land down under. I have seen some shit places where fish are caught and consumed and believe one insult results in another insulting response, like "I dont care if you wish to eat and suck on SHIT." have a fishy day you worm.
Anonymous said…
I just bought some basa from a Mexican market and when I opened the bag, I was sickened. It smelled like foot fungus and ammonia. Like urine and toe jam or something. Never again!

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